The Legend of Digitania
by Courage Sun
Summary: The Dark Masters have begun their dominance of Digitania, but during this world's darkest hour ten children rise up to challenge this apocolyptic force with the powers of the elements in thier hands. UNDER CONSTRUCTION! Will be reposted someday
1. The Last of Digitopia

me: Heeeeeeey...whaz up peoplez i'm back! ok this is the prequel to Heir of Light. Ya know a whole story about their past lives, and how they got their powers and yada yada yada. This idea has been in my head for like weeks, and so i finally decided to put it into words, or in this case on the hard drive, or whatever that thing is. This has a character that i'm not sure if anyone owns...so if you own her i am soooooooo...sry that i'm using her, Tai's twin sis Tar, i thought that since she's used in so many fics that she's in the comic or somethin. ok so last the couples: TAIORA, you should know them by now ), and a little bit of Taimeg (that's my character if u didn't know that, well not me, i based her name on my sis, but she's EVIL, the charater not my sis, well she can be evil too, but - oh never mind!), Kouar ( Tar x izzy, i thought it might be interesting, but it could change later), Mimato (again it might change), takari, not sure if i'm gonna put any other 02 people in here, if i do they'll have minor parts, but not sure at the moment. OK LET'S GET THIS FIC STARTED!

"Too long have I been trapped on this acursed continent. Too long have I watched those pitiful digimon and humans live happily among the lush land of Digitania. Too long has my punishment lasted, and those so called rulers no longer fear the evil just off their shores. But as their thoughts of the evil on this continent fade, our anger and hatered grows, and it won't be long now until those weaklings realize their mistake." Myotismon said as he gazed across the vast ocean toward the great continent in the distance. "I will have my revenge." He turned on his heels and began making his way toward the black castle that he made his home.

"Lord Myotismon, sir." a Bakemon said as he approached the powerful digimon.

"Yes, what is it," he replied irritated. The Bakemon seemed to see the evil glimer in his eyes and floated back a bit.

"Yes well, Colonel Piedmon wishes to speak with you at once about the invasion of Digitania."

Myotismon nodded his head and began striding toward the battle hall. The Bakemon floating behind him, making sure he didn't anger the merciless digimon. They walked in silence amongst the great pillars that were as high as skyscrapers and through the great halls that held an eerie darkness that reflected the evil bound to this continent. The Dark Continent is the place where all banished digimon and humans are ordered by the Great Leaders of each village/city to stay. A place of never ending night and where darkness plotted to sieze the powers of light. The Great Leaders were those chosen to lead their home, and every few years they would meet to learn of the obstacles passed and accomplishments made by each village/city. They were also the ones to punish those who diserved it, so naturally every digimon and human alike that resided on the Dark Continent loathed the Great Leaders. Many people wonder why the dark digimon can't use their powers to escape the darkness, and it is because of the shield that imprisoned the Dark Continent. The shield can counteract any form of dark magic there is, and although many have tried to break free, it is impossible. Or so many thought. Myotismon reached the room where their plans had been hatched. Although the residents of Digitania paid them no mind, they still kept the room hidden. The entrance is blocked by many enchantments and hidden booby-traps, but even so, only a select few could open it; Dark Lord Myotismon, Colonel Piedmon, Black Sorceress LadyDevimon, Knight Devimon, Commander of the Sea MetalSeadramon, Weapons Director Machinedramon, and Forest Mage Puppetmon. The highest ranking evil digimon to ever walk on the shores of the Dark Continent. They call themselves The Dark Masters.

"You wished to speak with me Piedmon," Myotismon stated as he took his seat at the head of the table.

"Yes, I believe the best place to begin the invasion would be the main city Digitopia. By attacking Digitania's largest and most powerful city first, the rest would easily bow down." Piedmon finished.

"That is a good plan," Myotismon said after weighing the situation's pros and cons. "But what do you forsee LadyDevimon, is this the right path to go?" LadyDevimon was not only an extreamly powerful dark digimon, but she also could tell the future at times. She closed her eyes, and reopened them. Her eyes began to swirl with black mist.

"I foretell the plan of action is the right one to make, but in order for our goal to be achieved, we must destroy the 10 chosen ones; the Ten Sages of the Elements; or our triumphs will be for nothing." she said as her eyes cleared of smoke.

"Well who are these Sages?" Devimon asked.

"The powers of darkness have left me, I can see no more." she replied, putting the conversation to rest.

"Then we shall do as planned, and start the invasion of Digitania at dawn," Piedmon said triumphantly.

"I agree, we will destroy the magic barrier and start our conquest." MetalSeadramon said.

"If all goes well, we should make it to Digitopia by sun down." Machinedramon added.

"Prepare yourself Digitania, the dark era is coming," Myotismon said as all the villians nodded.

"We attack at sun down." everyone said in unsion.

The beautiful city of Digitopia was indeed the largest and greatest of Digitania. It stand proudly near the cost, so the beach is in walking distance, and just at the edge of the magnificent forest. The bulidings were some of the finest ever constructed; all different colors and sparkling in the sunlight, and as tall as they were mesmerising. Many lived there, for the jobs were plentiful; fishing, the soil near the forest was rich so farming was common, lumber supplied much of the non-forest areas, and the tourism also helped the economy. Many came to lay eyes on the magistic castle in the center of town; created with opal-like stones, so the sun would cause a rainbow effect, it was the meeting place for all the Great Leaders. Or they would come for the peace and quiet of the beautiful city.

Kari was running swiftly through the city, dodging carts of food and other things standing in her way. She had to escape the two demons behind her, but obstacles were a way to slow them down. She reached the edge of town, and decided the forests would make a good diversion. She rushed toward the trees, and began weaving in and out of them, straying from the path and any other sign of civilization. She glanced behind her and saw some of the branches on the taller trees were shaking and leaves were falling from them in small piles of green. She picked up her pace and ran until she reached a cliff. She skidded to a stop and looked down; it wasn't too long a way down. and luckily there was a small pond at the bottom. She turned her head as heard the two approaching her position. She took a deep breath and let out a small squeal right before she hit the water's surface. She swam to the shore to catch her breath but as she turned her head she saw two blurs and then water splashed all over her. She growled in frustration at the persistant demons but got up and began running again.This time she ran toward the city, eager to get to the safety of their home to catch her breath. She ran as fast as she could, but stopped abrutantly when she saw a shadowy sillohette in the distance, she spun around and saw another sillohette. Both smirking and walking slowly toward her. There was only one way to go, behind her was an alley. So she quickly ran toward through it, but to her dismay, it was a dead-end. She turned her head and saw the two standing next to each other, blocking the only exit, both with triumphant smiles on their faces that they had caught their prey.

"We Win!" they said in unsion and started laughing. Kari rolled her eys but walked toward her siblings.

"Ok ok you guys win this round, but whose turn is it to be the prey?" Kari asked, eager for her turn to be the demon team, who usually won. It was a game they invented when Tai and Tar were seven, two people would be the demons and the rest would be the civilians; or the prey; If the prey could last five minutes without being caught then they win, but if they were caught then the demons won.

"I think it's my turn," Tai said.

"Ok, me and Kari will wait two minutes, and then you're dead." Tar said laughing slightly.

"We'll see," Tai said as he took off. They waited for about two minutes, then began to look for their brother. They looked throughout the city, but it didn't take long to find him. He was standing in the middle of one of the main roads, eyes glued on the sky and feet frozen in place.

"Tai," Tar said waving her hand in front of his face," Tai? TAI!" she screamed and snapped her fingers. "Tai what the-" Tai grabbed her handand pointed toward the sky. It had turned blood red from the sun setting, but the sky and ocean was filled with black clouds, but it wasn't clouds it was swarms of dark digimon. A loud screeching sound came from the city, signaling an emergency. Everyone on the streets stopped what they were doing and began running toward their homes. Tai, Tar, and Kari decided to do the same. They fled the streets, heading for the giant castle-like building in the middle of town that was their home. Their parents were the Great Leaders of Digitopia, so it had it's plus sides.

"What are those things?" Kari asked as they continued running through the crowded streets of panicing people and digimon.

"They look like digimon," Tai said. "But I've never seen that many in one place."

"Me neither," Tar said.

They continued running as fast as they could as they started hearing explosions and seeing buildings with flames dancing on the rooftops.

They continued running as fast as they could until they reached their home. There their mom stood waiting for them with worry in her eyes. "This way quickly," she said as they began to run upstairs.

"Mom what's happening?" Kari asked.

"Sshh...we don't have much time." she hissed. Tai, Tar and Kari were taken back by how serious and fearful she sounded. As they contined running, Tai was able to catch a glimpse of what was going on outside. Black digimon were swarming from the coast and destroying everything in their path. But they were heading straight for the very building they were in. "Quickly, in here." their mother motioned as she unlocked a door.

"I didn't know this room even exsisted," Tar said as she walked in. The room was dark, but there was a pedastel in the center of it that gave he room a small glow. On the pedestal there was a multi-colored box. Their mom rushed toward it and grabbed the box, and handed it to Tar. "Hold this." she said sternly. "I knew this day would come," she said quietly as she walked toward the back of the room and pulled an old looking piece of paper out of a small brown cubbard. "My children, I have told you the stories of the Ten Sages, well...they really exsist. In fact you might be three of them." she said quietly as she handed the old paper to Tai. "You must journey to each village and city on Digitania, In every village a Sage dwells. This is a map to each Sage. But the only way to know who the Sages are, is to use these." she said motioning the map and box. "In this box is an ancient tool of power. These are Elemental Crests. But at the moment they are powerless. You and all the Sages must find the Ten Shards of Unity. These shards bring power to the Elemental Crests and help it's users to control the elments. But the shards were taken from their restings places by the Dark Masters years ago, now each Dark Master carries one, and although they can not access the elements they can access the gift that goes along with them. These gifts are powerful, and can be used against you if you are not careful."

"Mom why didn't you tell us this before." Tar exclaimed.

"How long have you known about us being Sages?" Tai asked.

"I have known since the day you three were born," she said quietly as if ashamed of herself for not telling them. "In fact your father and I were planning on telling you when Tar and Tai were fifteen, and Kari was thirteen (A/N:yea, by the way, tai and tar are 13 right now and kari is 11). But with the circumstances at hand I am forced to tell you of your destinies now." as she started talking more, her eyes began to glaze with tears, "Your father and I wanted you to live like any normal children would, and if we told you of your being Sages, it would mean the Dark Masters would..." she choked back a sob as she said the next part," the Dark Masters would ...kill you. And we couldn't let that happen, so that is why we never told you." as she finished an explosion echoed through the castle walls, the Great Leader spun her head around and then urged her children toward the window. "Listen to me my darlings," she started tears flowing freely down her cheeks," I am so sorry that this burden has been placed upon your shoulders, but it has been your destiny to protect Digitania since the day you were born. Digitania needs you to find the other seven Sages by using this map and the Elemental Crests, once all are found you must begin your quest to find each Shard, only then will you have the ability to preform the task ahead." she finished. "My children, I love you more than anything, but you must go now, we do not have much time left." Tar , Tai, and Kari stared at their mother with wide eyes, they couldn't just leave her there to die at the hands of the Dark Masters.

"But mom can't you come with us, you and dad?" Kari asked walking toward her mom. But she shook her head.

"My place is here, in Digitopia, and my duty is to protect it. I will not allow these evil monsters to scare me away." she said with determination. "But now you must go." she said, though her voice was filled with soft sobs and the river of tears continued pouring down her cheeks. She carefully took the box from Tar's hands and placed the golden rings around their necks, each was solid gold and hung from a silver chain. Kari hugged her mom, and after a moment's hesitation began to descend to the ground out the window. Tar's eyes were full of saddness and disbelief, but after a quick hug from her mom, she lowered herself out the window as well, she continually used her hands to wipe away tears. Since she was the eldest of the three (by a few minutes) she wanted to be strong for them, and herself, and she couldn't do that by breaking down. Tai watched his sisters leave with a heavy heart. His brain wouldn't let him believe that he was leaving his home and half of his family behind, all of this information was way too overwhelming. "Tai, you must promise me that you will be extra careful, I don't have time to explain why, but the Dark Masters will be searching for you more than the other Sages." Tai gave his mom a confused look, but after running up to her and giving her a final hug, he began desending to the ground. He took one more glance at his mom, and felt his heart jump into his throat at the thought of leaving her behind, but he continued to climb down. The Great Leader watched her children leave, and felt several hot tears escape her eyes. "Good luck my darlings" she said just as the wall behind her crumbled, revealing the Dark Masters.

As Tai felt his feet touch earth he turned his head and saw Kari biting her lip and her eyes red from crying, and Tar had her face toward the ground, but still trying to be strong for them. Silence was hushed around the group as they took in all that was said by their mom, but someone had to break it, even though no one wanted to.

"Guys, we'd better get going," Tai said slowly. They had to get moving, or risk being captured or killed by the Dark Masters. Everyone slowly nodded their heads, although with every step they took more pain was weighed on their hearts. They walked for what seemed like hours, until they reached the cliff they were at earlier. They jumped onto a ledge that stuck out from behind the waterfall on the cliff, and decided to rest there for the night.

"So what do you think each of these things mean?" Kari asked her siblings as she examined the Elemental Crests hanging around her neck. The three of them exchanged glances, not really sure what the answer to the question was.

"Mom called them Elemental Crests, so they must control an element." Tar said as she too removed the crests from her neck.

"From all the stories and legends I've heard about the Sages, I think the crests help them awaken their power," Kari said.

"The power being the elements themselves, so each of these Elemental Crests awakens the power of each element for the Sages." Tai finished.

"Right, now all we have to do is figure out which one is ours, if we have one." Tar said.

"But how do we do that?" Tai asked.

"Well, if the Elemental Crests just awaken the powers of the Sages, if we are Sages then these should awaken the powers we have already." Kari replied.

"Right," Tar and Tai said in unsion. Without hesitation they put their hands over all the Elemental Crests, and threir hands began to glow. Tai's red and orange, Tar's dark blue and black, and Kari's pink and yellow. Slowly three of the solid gold rings began to rise off the ground and float into their hands, all glowing the same as their hands. They grasped the crests in their outstetched hands, their eyes all wide. They looked up at each other and gasped; Tar's usual green and blue shirt was now black and her eye turned dark blue, and dark blue and black streaks slashed through her shoulder length brown hair. Kari had a dark pink shirt on and light pink and yellow highlights in her hair, her eyes also turned light pink, only yellow specks dotted them, and Tai's usual blue shirt was now red with orange flames at the ends of the sleeves and the base of the shirt, his headband turned red, as well as his eyes, only they too had specks throughout them, only orange and yellow, the tips of his spikey hair turned red also.

"Whoa," Kari said after getting over the shock of the changes she and her siblings had.

"I guess this answers our questions." Tar said as she glanced from Tai to Kari.

"Well, if our new colors represent our elements, then you have Shadow Tar, and Kari you have Light." Tai said.

"And you have Fire," Kari added. A long moment of complete silence followed, as they realized this was real, it wasn't a game that would end as soon as they grew weary. The truth had finally dawned on them; They were three of the real Ten Sages, and now they had to find the rest of the magical beings, and the shard to awaken their power. This was now a quest they had to fulfill in order for Digitania to survive. The dangers they knew were waiting ahead were frightning, but given the knowledge that they were the only ones who could save their home was pure terror. If they failed the Dark Masters could easily take over Digitania, just as they had easily destroyed Digitopia. The thought of their once peaceful and beautiful home made their saddness return. The thought of never seeing their friends again, never getting to walk on the sandy beach and swim in the clear ocean, or never seeing their beloved parents was far too much for them to bare. All they had now were nine of the ten Elemental Crests, a map of each place they had to venture to, stories and legends of the Ten Sages, and each other to complete this task. Not much for a task like this to be fufilled, but enough to keep hope in their hearts and minds.

"So should we begin our adventure tomorrow?" Kari asked. The sudden sound of her voice made Tai and Tar jump in surprise. A small smile curved their lips though.

"Yea, the sooner we defeat the Dark Masters the better," Tar said excitedly.

"Right, and nothing's gonna stop us!" Tai procalimed. The mood around the Kamiyas' had lightened, but dread still lingered in the backs of their mind. But now only time will tell what will happen in the days that follow. For even now as the three fall asleep, evil is watching their every move, and pleased with the results.

_"Tai of Digitopia, your power will be mine_." a voice hissed in his head. Tai jerked up from where he had been sleeping, but saw no one that could've said this to him. Still, he decided to heed his mother's warning and be extra careful. But for now he had to sleep, they would be beginning their quest the next day, to Frozen City.

me: YAY! the first chapt is done! i seriously didn't know how it would turn out since i had no idea as to how to start it. But i'm likin this yay! well R&R i love gettin reviews, and no flames please, they make me all depressed. Anyway, luv ya'll Bye!


	2. Frozen City

me: YAY! i say that too much, but who cares, i'm usually a happy person, ask anyone who knows me, lol. Ok, **last time**: Tai, Tar, and Kari's home, Digitopia, was invaded by the Dark Masters and their followers from the Dark Continent for revenge against two of the Great Leaders who imprisoined them on the continent. Their mom and dad are those Great Leaders, and before Digitopia was completly destroyed their mom gave them nine of the ten Elemental Crests and a map to the Ten Sages. She told them of their destinies as Sages themselves; Tai of Fire, Tar of Shadow, and Kari of Light; and how they had to find the other Sages and the Ten Shards of Unity which are kept by the Dark Masters. Now they begin their quest to the glacier part of Digitania; The Frozen City, and the Sage of Ice.

"Who's b-brilliant idea was it t-to go t-to the fr-frozen city fir-first?" Kari asked through chattering teeth.

"Hey we all agreed to go here first." Tai exclaimed.

"The n-n-next time we decide to go t-to a glacier during summer in Digitopia, r-r-remind me to at least bring a j-jacket, th-that way i won't-t fr-freeze." Tar complained.

"T-T-Tai how come you're the o-only one n-not fr-freezing?" Kari asked as she huddled together with Tar. Tai glanced back at them with his new red eyes and shrugged.

"I don't know, I'm just not that cold." he replied simply. The two sisters' mouths dropped as they stared at him with disbelief.

"I-i just h-ho-hope we get-t there s-soon." Tar said still shaking.

They walked for what seemed like hours until they saw shadowy sillohettes in the distance, the ice buildings that helped make up the Frozen City. At their first sight of civilization the three ran as fast as they could toward the city outstretched before them. When they reached the FRozen City at last they gazed at it wide-eyed. In thecenter of the city was a tall dome-shaped ice building, obviously the Great Leader of this area's home. People were bustling around with carts of food and many other things they sold for profit. Ice-made dome buildings covered the area and it seemed as though nothing had happened just a few miles noth of here, in Digitopia.

"Wow the last itme we were here it wasn't nearly this big," Tai thought aloud.

"Who cares! Let's just go talk to Mr. Ishida and warm up." Tar said angrily.

"The cold too much for you Tar?" Tai asked smirking.

"If my fingers weren't numb I'd make you eat those words," Tar said narrowing her eyes.

"Ok you two knock it off," Kari said rolling her eyes.

"Yes mom," they said in unsion then started laughing. They calmly made their way to the center of town, although they got some weird looks from passing people and cold-loving digimon. When they reached the gate, which was made of strong curving iceicles, they walked through it, they were all a little nervous since they hadn't been here in years. And Kari didn't remember it since she was so little.

"Hault!" someone yelled. They spun around and came face to face with two gaurds with spears and two Fridgemon (sp?)

"Who are you and what buisness do you have with the Frozen City's Great Leader?" one of the Fridgemon asked.

"We're the Kamiya children of Digitopia." Tar said sternly.

"We have important news concerning Digitania." Tai finished. The guards gave them skeptical looks, but nodded. Two left, but the other two stayed.

"I am Rolad, and this is my partner Fridgemon." the guard said.

"I'm Kari, and this is my brother and sister Tai and Tar." Kari said being her usual friendly self. The two guards nodded and motioned for the three to follow them. The ice dome was probably one of the most spectacular places you could ever hope to visit. It had high ceilings and was made completely of ice, the walls and ceilings had twisting and curving lines of ice. Making it look like bright blue vines covered everything. The sun reflecting off it also made it glow and sparkle like it was a massive diamond. A long dark blue strip of carpet came from one end of the hallway to the other, which led to a tall ice door with a large snowflake etched ito it's smooth polished surface.

"This way," Rolad said as he opened the large door. As they entered the huge room they saw a flight of stairs in the center of it with a glass-like chair at the top. In the chair sat a man with a warm looking blue fur coat, long blue warm-ups, and large brown boots on. A small smile glued to his face.

"Hello, and welcome to the Frozen City." he said cheerfully.

"Sir, they claim to be the children of the Kamiyas in Digitopia." the Fridgemon said. This made the Great Leader's eyes widen.

"You don't say, well in that case-" he started as he walked down to ground level. "You wouldn't mind answering a question." he said. He obviously didn't believe them.

"Bring it on," Tai said smirking.

"What was the nickname you gave my son the last time you were here, only two people besides myself and him know that answer, and that would be the real Tai and Tar." Tar and Tai smirked, that had to be the easiest question he could've asked them.

"That's an easy one," Tar said smiling.

"Matt!" they said in unsion. This made Mr. Ishida's eyes grow wide.

"So it really is you," he said in almost disbelief," then the rumors are true," he finished facing his head toward the ground. "Digitopia really is gone." The three siblings nodded sadly.

"You called dad?" a voice came from another part of the room. All heads turned in that direction. "No way, Tai Tar, how long has it been guys," he said happily.

"Hey Matt, what's happening man." Tai said after they slapped their hands together.

"Yes Tai?"

"Before we left...my mom told me something she didn't want my sisters to hear. She said that the Dark Masters would be after me more than the others. And I was wondering if you knew why." he replied. Mr. Ishida took a deep breath.

"Tai the truth is, none of are sure, but you see, your parents did tell me that if you ever asked me this question to tell you that at the end of your quest you will meet someone that holds all the answers you seek, he is probably the one who told your parents in the first place." he finished. Tai nodded.

"Thanks Mr. Ishida." Tai said, "Oh, if Matt asks where I went, I'll be at the market area." Mr. Ishida nodded his head, and Tai began walking outside. The air was so cool and crisp, it was so different from his home. The last time he was here it was a small village, but look what five years can do to a place. He calmly walked through the snow filled streets, he was looking for something, but he just didn't know what it was yet. The shops were plentiful all along the main road were people selling things, but a certain one caught his eye. It was a jewelry shop. It was small but even from where he stood he could see the glimering merchandise. He walked over to it and looked at some of the necklaces hanging from the top of the cart. Last night after his sisters fell asleep he looked at all the places on the map his mother had given them. The places were numerous; the Frozen City, the Earth Kingdom, Light Lagoon, Water Village, Electric Summit, th Shadow Realm, Dragon Fire Rural, and Windy Glen. The last one had instantly caught his eye, his best friend lived in Windy Glen, her name was Sora, and if they had to go there he would get to see her. But since it had been so long he wanted to get her something, and maybe something here might be good enough. One item caught his attention; it was a necklace with a red and orange heart shaped stone that reflected the light perfectly and shimmered with brillance.

_Sora loves red _he thought smiling. Suddenly a skinny old lady popped up from behind the counter startling him so much that it made him fall backwards.

"See something you find interesting young man?" she asked.

"Um...yea." he said standing up.

"So sorry if I startled you, I had dropped my earing, and when I came back up there you were." she said sincerely.

"No problem," he said brushing snow off his red shirt. "but I was wondering, how much for this necklace?"

"Ah...this necklace is quite lovely isn't it. Giving it to someone special aren't we?" she said smirking. Tai blushed slightly.

"I guess you could say that, she's my best friend after all." he replied.

"Well for you, how about two silver pieces?" she asked.

"Deal," Tai said gettting two pieces of silver out of his pocket. She handed the small trinket to him, but a small gasp escaped her lips.

"Your eyes, they look like flames," she said with amazement.

"Yea, thanks for the necklace, gotta go, bye." he said quickly and then he started running off. But as he rounded a corner he ran straight into someone.

"Ouch," they said at the same time. "Tai there you are." a familiar voice cried. He looked up and saw the person he had run into was Tar.

"You were looking for me?" he asked as he stood up and then helped her up.

"Yea, evil digimon have been spotted heading this direction," she said grabbing his arm and running back to the ice dome.

"What!" he cried in shock. "But we haven't even found the Sage yet!"

"We'll worry about that when we get to the dome, right now we have to worry about them finding us, after all we do have the Elemental Crests," she replied.

"Well then we better get there now." he said as they both put on an extra bit of speed. They had made it to the gates with no time to spare, they ran through the beautiful hallways until they reached the grand doors into the main room. There they found Matt, Kari, Mr. Ishida, and a few guards waiting for them.

"Come quickly," Mr. Ishida said as he ran toward a wall. He glanced around then put his hand on a certain part of the wall, and like magic it lit up with bright blue light and then revealed a hole in the wall just big enough for them all to squeeze in. Matt was incredibly surprised.

"Dad how come you didn't tell me about this before?" he asked.

"Matt, this leads to the most secret part of the dome, no one but myself knew of it. It is where I was told to take you if the worst came." he replied

"Told by who?" Matt asked. But Mr. Ishida didn't reply. He hurried them down the winding path until they reached another large room, only this one was pulsing with power, you could literarly feel it pounding through your veins.

"This is the most sacred room in the whole dome, hardly anyone has ever stepped into this room. And the reason I have brought you here, is because of these," he replied pointing to the crests worn by Tai, Tar, and Kari.

"What are they?" Matt asked. But no later after he said that one of the gold rings around Kari's neck began glowing with a light blue light. I floated up and over her head and into Matt's palm. As he clenched his fingers around the ring, blue and white lght surrounded him, enclosing him in a blizzard of bright light. When the light cleared it revealed Matt with white streaks through his blonde hair and his blue eyes now had light blue specks throughout them. His coat had disappeared and left him with a light blue no-sleeve shirt with jeans. (A/N: the same thing he wore in 01 season, only blue) He let out a small gasp, and with trembling fingers, put the Elemental Crest around his neck.

"So, my suspicions were correct," Mr. Ishida started," The four of you are Sages."

"Wait, you guys are Sages too?" Matt exclaimed.

"Yea, but we couldn't tell you earlier, because if you weren't another one of us we would've endangered you," Kari explained.

"But we don't have our full power yet. The Dark Masters prevent that." Tai finished with clenched fists at the thought of the Dark Masters.

"Sorry to break up this interesting conversation, but I'll be taking the children with me," a voice from the shadows said. All heads turned toward the entrance of the large room and saw none other than the Dark Masters.

"Ha Ha Ha, these are the Sages that gave you worry LadyDevimon," Piedmon sid with amusement. LadyDevimon gave him a dark glare, but quickly turned her attention back to the Sages.

"Well, even if there are only four of you here, I'm sure with the help of the other Elemental Crests we will easily be able to obtain our goal." Myotismon said smirking. Tar and Tai started thinking fast. There had to be a way out of here. Suddenly an idea clicked in Tai's head, although their powers weren't at their peak, they were stil accessible. He clutched his hand behind his back, Tar was catching on to what her twin was thinking and followed suit. It wasn't long until orange flames spiraled up Tai's arm and Black mist clouded up Tar's. Their eyes began glowing lightly and fire lit up the ground in front of them. Matt and Kari fell backwards surprised, but Kari saw what they were doing and her hands started glowing pink and yellow. She and Tar shot a beam of black, yellow, and pink light at their enemies. It caused them little damage, but gave them the diversion they needed to escape. With Mr. Ishida leading the way, he had opened another secret door in the magic chamber, and urged them out into the sunlight. They blinked and winced in the bright sun, but what they saw made all their hearts swell with saddness and hatred. The entire city had been destroyed. The great city that was once the Frozen City was burned to the now ash covered snow. Horror spread across the Ishidas' faces, as their light skin grew even paler snd saddness was enveloped around their hearts.

"You all must leave." the Great Leader siad as he faced his head to the ground.

"Dad, we can take you too, I mean we can take you to Windy Glen. You'll be safe there." Matt pleaded.

"Listen Matt," he said softly. "You and the Kamiyas must find the rest of the Sages and get the Shards back from the Dark Masters. And I must stay here, I could never forgive myself if I ran from my home while the other inhabitants of it stayed even in their apparent doom."

"Then I'll stay too," Matt said stubbornly.

"No Matt. Your mission is far more important than this ruined city. The four of you as well as the other six Sages are all we have left to defend Digitania against the darkness. You must go, and now before the Dark Masters reach the surface." he replied with a sterness in his voice. "I love you son, but the four of you must leave now." he said as his eyes softened. Matt slowly nodded his head, trying not to show his emotions. And the four of them ran as fast as they could from the once beautiful ciy. But as they ran a voice was heard in Tai's head again_. Tai of Digitopia, your power belongs to me_... it hissed with venom. Tai stopped suddenly, but again nothing was visable on the snowy plain.

"Tai why'd you stop running?" Matt asked panting slightly.

"You guys didn't hear that?" he asked. Everyone shook their heads in confusion. "It's probably nothing anyway," he said after a few minutes. But he knew it wasn't nothing, something...or someone was after him, and he didn't have any idea who it could be, only that it wanted his power. But that left so many questions unanswered, questions, that, hopefully, wouldn't come back to haunt him in Windy Glen.

YAY! i'm done! sry it took me sooooooo long to get back to you guyz. I hpe my next chapt won't take as long as this one did lol. R&R!

_**JyouraKoumi: **smirks cuz the Heir of Light was Mimato, so i need this one to be it as well. But like i said it MAY change._

_**battousai-clau: **thanx sooooooo much for the review ) you are AWESOME! and sry it took me soooo long to update. _

_**Crimson G: **yea i wanted it to be confusing lol. and yea itz an alternate reality fic, sry i didn't put that in the summary, i forgot lol. But yea remember this is thousand and thousands and... of years ago, and Digitania is a place my mind created that's like an alternate form of the digi and real worlds, so it's pretty much the same as the digi. Whoa my brain hurts.lol. And thanks for the info about KaiserGreymon that helps alot ) Thanx for reviewing and still readin my fics YOU ROCK! Later much!_

_**star: **thanks sooooooo much for the review! and gasp i didn't know anoymous reviews were blocked, sry. Yea and the color changes were probably confusing cuz i waz writin that part at school, yea at distractions and stuff, so sry. And thanx soooooooo much for the review for BOTH stories! You're AWESOME DUDE! _

_**Rayana Wolfer:** YAY! another great reviewe to me! glad to see you still reading my fics - and even though you can only come online on the weekends and you choose to read my fic THAT'S SO COOL in my opinion. YOU ROCK MY FRIEND! (p.s. u live in Portugal, that's so cool, sry, had to put that in this nn)_

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha**: Thanx for the great review! and don't worry i'm definatly gonna write a sequel, i'm just figuring out a few things about it, and, hey, i might submit the sequeal along with this one ) you never know but for sure for sure i'm gonna have a sequeal. LATER, U ROCK! _


	3. Windy Glen

me: hey whaz up peeps ). SRY! i've been soooooooo damn busy, and iz been killin me since i knew u guys were waiting for me to update lol, so sry, again. anyway hope you like the next chapt. R&R! LATER!

**last time: **When Tai, Tar, and Kari reached the Frozen City they were cold and miserable. They journeyed to the ice dome in the center of the city where the Great Leader; Mr. Ishida; and his son Matt lived. After some distrust and obstacles from guards and digimon they met up with Matt, but before they had time to relax, the Dark Masters attacked the Frozen City. When they ran back to the dome they entered a secret room that only the Great Leader knew about, there they found the Sage of Ice, Matt. Mr. Ishida stayed behind to meet his doom, but the rest continued their quest to Windy Glen to hopefully find the Sage of Wind.

Hungry and exhausted the four stopped to rest. They had been walking two days, just waiting to find the giant trees that signaled the entrance to Windy Glen. The whole journey they talked seldom, all consumed by their thoughts. Matt was still unsure of all this Sage stuff. Sure he had seen Tai, Tar, and Kari use the elements with his own eyes, but besides this Elemental Crest hanging around his neck what proof did they have of him being a Sage? It was all very confusing and overwhelming to him.

Tai was still worried about that dark voice that he kept hearing. It seemed that the closer they came to their goal the louder and more sinister the voice had become. It said the same thing every time: '_Tai of Digitopia, your power will be mine' _. He hadn't told any of his friends about the voice yet, but it was evident that something bad was going to happen, and more than likely to him.

Tar could feel the tension in the air. It was obvious something was bothering her brother, but if he wasn't going to say anything about it, it meant he didn't want to talk about it. But what was wrong with Matt? Sure they just had to leave his dad back at the Frozen City two days ago, but none of them knew if their parents were really dead, it was possible they had escaped. Although the odds were slim, there was still a small chance. And there was no use crying about it now, not when they had to put 100 into the quest ahead.

Kari glanced at all the people around her. She knew something was wrong with all of them, and it hurt her to know she didn't couldn't do anything to help. The tension and saddness that lingered in the air gave her a sense of dread and depression. Never had she seen her brother so distressed about something, and she knew him better than to think it was because of their new destiny. And Tar was looking almost as equally distressed, probably for the same reason she was, the tension and dread surrounding Matt and Tai. Kari couldn't stand the silence any longer, it was only making her feel worse about the situation, she had to say something.

"Guys," she said her voice cracking from lack of use. The sudden sound of her voice made everybody else jump slightly. "Ok, what's going on. I've never seen you two be quiet for more than around ten minutes. And Matt although I barely remember you, I know you can't be this down about this whole ordeal." she exclaimed. Obviously she was upset about everything since Kari rarely raised her voice.

"Sorry Kar, something has just been on my mind lately," Tai replied giving her a small reassuring smile.

"Yea, and I'm still trying to accept the fact that WE have to go against the Dark Masters." Matt added.

"Well we do, and there's nothing we can do about it, so there's no reason to look so glum about it," Tar said putting her hands on her hips. Kari nodded.

"Well, we better keep moving if we want to reach Windy Glen before I'm thirty," Kari said as she and Tar started walking again.

"Sisters" Tai said rolling his eyes. Matt laughed a little.

"That's why I'm glad I don't have them." Matt replied.

"Consider yourself lucky," Tai added.

"I HEARD THAT!" Tar yelled from ahead.

"Oh...I do." Matt said as he watched Tai's eyes widen a little after Tar yelled at him. Suddenly something caught Matt's eye; he looked up and saw a silver piece of cloth hanging from the branch of a very tall tree. "Hey guys," he said pointing to it, "What's that?" Their heads turned to look at the cloth bellowing in the wind.

"I don't know, but I'll go see," Tai replied as he ran over to the tree, and with ease climbed up to it.

"How did he-" Matt asked in bewilderment.

"Three summers in Windy Glen with," Tar got an evil gleam in her eyes, "his girlfriend." she said mockingly. Tai spun his head around and glared at his sister, but said nothing. "Girlfriend!" Kari exclaimed. "Who, tell me who!" she pleaded. Matt seemed eager as well to learn about her.

"She's NOT my girlfriend," Tai said as he jumped down with the silver cloth in his grasp. Tar rolled her eyes and smirked.

"Su-re," she replied not believing a word he was saying. Tai rolled his eyes, but decided to just ignore her.

"Ok, whatever," he replied, although his cheeks were a few digrees hotter.

"Well, what did you find?" Matt asked. Tai smiled.

"Follow me," he said before darting off into the woods. The trio quickly ran after him, although they had no idea where they were going.

"Tai could you slow down." Kari yelled. Suddenly Tai stopped, making everybody run into him.

"Ouch, maybe I should warm you they next time I stop." he said rubbing his head.

"That would be nice," Matt replied, obviously irritated about landing face-first into the ground.

"Why'd you take off like that?" Kari asked.

"Traps." Tai replied brushing some dirt off his shirt.

Traps!" the others cried. Tai nodded.

"That silver scarf was put there a long time ago, and for people and digimon who know this area, they can easily avoid all the traps, but for those that don't-" Tai stated.

"So, we're almost there?" Tar inquired.

"See for yourself," he replied looking upward. Gasps echoed around the small clearing. Windy Glen was a giant treehouse-like city. The houses were huge, but well camoflagued by the thick trees, but it truely lived up to it's name, the area had a lot of wind blowing around. Ropes hung from tree to tree, providing the only way across the great chasm, pullies rested on the ropes for easier access to other parts of the city, and digimon and human alike glided from one end to the other right above them on these pullies. In the tallest tree was a silver palace, spirals were chiseled into the surface, making it look like wind. "Wow, this place hasn't changed much at all," Tai said in awe.

"So-o how do we get up there?" Tar asked. Everyone turned their heads to look at Tai. He laughed a little after seeing the look of distress cross thier faces, he knew they weren't about to climb all the way up there.

"Tai, please tell me there's an elevator or something to get us up there," Kari pleaded.

"Ok,ok, come on," he motioned toward a thick tree, and placed his hand on a certain part of the bark. A silver line glided up and down his hand, until a voice confirmed his handprint being of Windy Glen. Two doors covered by bark opened up before them.

"So there is an elevator," Matt said in astonishment.

"Something like that," Tai replied. A round piece of bark lay at the bottom of it with a rope in the center. "We have to pull this to get to the top," he said pointing to the rope. Groans echoed around the group, they were all tired and hungry and the last thing they wanted to do was pull a rope to get to the next city.

"Can't we climb it later?" Matt complained.

"Well, you three do what you want, but personally I don't want to be down here when the Ri-Nan (pronounced: Re-Naun) show up." Tai said as he walked toward the elevator-like tree. Shivers ran up each of there spines; Ri-Nans were dangerous creatures, all could move swiftly like wolves, but could disappear and reappear like mist. They were shadow-like beasts, with glowing red and purple eyes full of hate and anger. They traveled in groups of three and worked as a team to triangulate their prey, then in the blink of an eye they'd use one of their razor-like black claws to tear the flesh off their victem's bodies. Or, far worse than that; they'd use their dripping black fangs to inject deadly poision throughout their bodies, causing a slow, painful death. Shortly after remembering the tales, they rushed into the elevator, eager to get to the top.

"I thought that might change your mind." Tai said as he joined them in the elevator.

After they finally reached the top, they began walking through the treetop city. The buildings were all silver and wind blew around them, as if welcoming them to their domain. After searching for a while, they layed their eyes on the looming silver castle in the distance. They glanced at each other, not entirely sure what to expect of this place after the Frozen City, but nevertheless they proceeded toward it.

"So this is the Takenouchi's place," Tar said after gazing at the great palace before them, "hm...no wonder you didn't want to come home, what with your girlfriend living here and-"

"TAR!" Tai yelled, his cheeks flushed. "She's not my girlfriend, just my best friend." Tar smirked but didn't press the matter. Since Tai could control flames now, and what with his firey temper, she didn't want Windy Glen to be burnt to the ground. Matt and Kari snickered, but followed after Tai to the castle of wind.

"You there hault!" cried someone in the distance. It was a palace guard hurrying toward them with weapons at hand.

"Not again," Kari said with a small sigh.

"How do we plan on convincing them?" Matt asked. "I've heard the guards of Windy Glen are about the most stubborn people in all of Digitania."

"You obviously don't know Tai and Tar very well," Kari said giggling.

"Who are you, and what buisness do you have at the Castle of Winds?" he interrogated.

"We're friends of Sora," Tar answered. He gave them a skeptical look, but the frown never left his solid features.

"The only friends of Miss Sora's that I know of are Miss Mimi Tachikawa and Sir Tai Kamiya." he replied.

"I'm Tai Kamiya," Tai replied. The guard seemed to jump at this, but his eyes became less and less inviting. He thrust his arm out and pointed a glimering dagger at Tai's throat.

"There is only one way I can know for sure," he replied, "If you can understand what I'm saying then I will believe you, for only two people besides myself and few others know this secret language. Tai being one of them." he completed. _"uoy lliw rewsna ym noitseuq yltcerroc ro uoy dna ruoy sdneirf lliw eid_." Tai's eyes flashed angrily.

_"I tnod kniht os, I kniht duoy retteb evom tuo fo ruo yaw, sselnu uoy tnaw taht ecin reggad detlem otni a paeh fo gnilbbub etsaw_." he said as his eyes began to flicker like flames and his hands began to glow. The guard's eyes grew wide. Tai grabbed the glimmering blade of the guard's dagger and it began to sizzle and bubble under his grasp, steam too came from between his fingers. When he let go the tip of the blade was no longer sharp and dnagerous, but rounded and dull, and the glimmer was gone and replaced by a deformed mass of dripping grey. The guard backed away, his eyes never leaving the destroyed dagger.

"Tai what did you and the guard say?" Kari asked.

"He threatened us, so I got rid of his weapon," he replied smiling. "But let's go, I don't want more guards to show up." The rest of his anger had evaporated and was replaced by his usual playfulness.

"Hey Tar, what was that weird tongue all about?" Matt whispered.

"Tai didn't tell me much about it, only that it's called Digitanian. I think that it was spoken by the earliest inhabitants of Digitania. But that's just my guess." she replied. Matt nodded his head.

"Ok, so now that we're in the castle, how do we find Sora and Mrs. Takenouchi?" Kari asked. Tai glanced around the long hallways that had doors on both sides, probably leading into more and more hallways identical to this one. It was an ancient trick used when the castle was built to trick those who wanted to cause harm to Windy Glen.

"I think it's this way," Tai said after a moment's hesitation.

"Are you sure?" Matt, who did not want to be lost in the Castle of Winds forever, asked.

"I said I think, but it looks like it's been changed recently." Tai replied. But nevertheless they followed him down the winding hallways and corridors, almost certain they would take one false turn and be lost forever. They continued walking until they reached a very large room. Works of art hung throughout the magestic room, and silver and gold drappings hung over the windows. A silence of pure awe lingered in the air. "Wow it hasn't changed at all." Tai said after taking in the beauty the familar room. "Don't be so entranced thieves." An unfamiliar vice echoed from behind them. All heads turned toward the threatening voice, and saw four knights at the entrance. Three of them were large and had gleaming silver armour and large swords. The other, the one who had spoken, was much smaller than the rest and instead of wearing armour, had bright red samari-like clothes, a mask that covered her hair and face, but revealed her crimson eyes, and two long white swords that glowed magically. "We are not thieves," Tar said angrily, her eyes slanting dangerously. "Sure you're not." The leader of the guards replied," I don't know how you managed to get past the traps in the forest, find the secret elevator, get past one of our mercilest guards, and find your way to this room without geting lost, but you will regret setting foot in the Castle off Winds." "Wait, we just need to see Sora," Matt said, not wanting to make trouble with armed enimies. "Sorry, but thieves can't speak to Miss Sora," The largest guard barked. And with that the four advanced forward, it seemed they had already choosen who they would battle. The largest moved towards Kari, certain he could take her, but Kari thought otherwise. What she lacked in strength she had in agility. The guard, although muscular, was slow and overly confident. He instantly tried to grab her arm, but Kari, quick as lightning, flipped backwards, and ou of harms way. The guard looked a little shocked, but decided not to take her lightly, he unshiethed his sword, and thrusted it at her, but again Kari flipped backwards, except she roughly kicked him in the jaw. He staggered backwards in surprise, and Kari jumped up again and gave him another kick in the head. He tumbled backwards until falling on the floor. Kari's eyes lit up with triumph and a smile curled her lips.

"That'll teach you," she said still smiling.

Tar, too, was having quite an easy time. This guard she was battling was the smaller one, besides the leader. His strongest point was probably strength, but he was pretty quick since his armour wasn't really heavy. But Tar was quicker. Each of her siblings had a strongest point; Kari agility, Tai speed, and herself fighting skills. She wasn't as strong, fast, or agile as someone she knew, but what she was best at was trying to figure out the weakness of her opponent. She watched with interest at each step the guard took, each movement, each attack, until she found something that proved promising. The guard focused all his attention on where his sword was being thrusted, and not on her directly. She just had to chose the right moment. The oppertunity finally arrived when he drew back his sword, prepare to strike, then she charged forward, knocking him down in surprise. She took the sword from his hand and smirked. Then she kicked his head, making him fall unconscious.

"Too easy," she said laughing. (a/n: i don't wanna saound mean by them all knocking them out, but seriously, would you turn around to leave and then they come back and attack. i don't think so.)

Meanwhile Matt was fairing just as well. He had been trained by his father how to use anything as a weapon, including drapery. At the beginning of the battle he had torn one of the golden drapperies from the windows, and to his fortune when he held it up to use as a defense from the guard's blade, his sword sliced through it like a knife through butter, making it easier for him to use it. The guard swung the sword at him, and with great skill, Matt wrapped the gold cloth around it and pulled it out of his hands. Then as quick as a flash threw the cloth around his head, and circled behind him and grasped the fralling ends of the cloth and with all his strength, threw him to the ground. The guard lay there gasping for air, got up and ran toward the doors.

"I thought guards were supposed to be brave." Matt said tossing the cloth aside.

Tai was having difficulty. It was like he'd fought her before. She knew some of his moves and how to counter-act them, but at the same time he knew many of her's. He glanced to the side and saw a sword coming for his head, he dropped to the ground just in time, and glared at the bearer of the sword.

"Why are you attacking us?" he asked as he got up from the stone floor.

"Why do you think?" she asked her eyes gleaming,"Do you think I attack people just because they're there?"

"By the way you're treating four people who simply want to speak to Sora, yea that's what I'm thinking," he replied. Her eyes flashed, and she grasped Tai's wrists and pinned him against the wall.

"Why do you want to speak with her." She demanded. Tai slid his foot beneath her feet, making her loose her balance and grip on his wrists. Now he pinned her to the ground.

"That's none of your concern," he said his eyes flickering.

"Anything involving Sora is my buisness!" she replied angrily, and flipped him so he was pinned again. Her eyes softened. "Why do you lok so...familiar?" Tai stopped struggling, and looked at her crimson eyes. He cocked his head slightly.

"Sor?" he asked. Her eyes widened.

"Only one person in all of Digitania ever called me that!" she replied in awe. She stared into the eyes of the intruder, really stared into them, and saw the same playful flicker dwelling in them that she had only seen in her best friend's eyes.

"Tai?" she exclaimed, not believing she would ever say that name again She unwrapped the red cloth from around her head, revealing her auburn hair and the rest of her face. "No way, it is you!" she said throwing her arms around his neck. Tai laughed a little. "I thought you were..." her voice trailed for a moment as a tear slipped slowly down her cheek, "dead," she choked. Tai wiped the single tear away gently.

"Can't get rid of me that easily," he said smiling. Sora laughed. "But you thought I was dead... why?" he asked. Sora took a deep shaking breath.

"About a week ago, we heard rumours about the Dark Masters invading Digitopia. And...everyone there was slaughtered. So my mother asked me and one of the armies to see if the rumours were true or not, but when we got there...it was in ruins. Not a living soul inhabited the entire city, and blood stained everywhere. I left the entire army to search for survivors and I went to the GL meeting place (a/n: GL stands for Great Leader, I'M SICK OF WRITING IT! lol, ok) but it was in far worse shape than the entire city combined, and...you, Tar, Kari, and your parents...seemed to vanish. We searched everywhere for signs that you were still alive, but...our efforts were in vain. We found nothing, and with heavy hearts left for home." Her eyes cast toward the ground. "That is why we didn't trust you and the others when you first came in. We thought you were imposters of our fallen friends, and well..." a sheepish smile appeared on her face.

"Oh. So you were having anger issues and decided to take it out on someone else," Tai replied smirking.

"What would you have done," she replied, also smirking.

"Hmmm...probably the same thing." They both started laughing as though they hadn't been trying to slit each others' throats a moment ago.

"Sora!" a shocked voice rang out. Tai and Sora wiped their heads in the direction of the voice.

"Tar," Sora squealed. The two girls let out a short scream and hugged one another. Matt and Tai rolled their eyes and Kari giggled.(a/n that's how me and my friends act when we haven't seen each other for a while, lol, we scream and hug. lol, it's fun)

As they walked through the winding hallways the whole group talked. Each of them could bring back memories of one another and the whole group would laugh, and outside the doors you'd think there'd be nothing wrong. But evil was spreading throughout all of Digitania, destroying smaller villages and reaking havoc throughout the land, and with each destroyed area, the Dark Masters' rule spread, and their mark; a black crown with a sword stabbed through the top; that was branded onto each fallen village, grew more and more common.

The night crept up on them. Mrs. Takenouchi, GL of Windy Glen, insisted on them staying for the night, and the group decided it would be a good idea. Their aching muscles needed rest for the rougher part of the journey, and they still needed to find the Sage of Wind. But while Matt, Kari, Tar, and Sora slept peacefully in the comfortable blankets and pillows leant to them for the night, Tai's head was spinning_. The voice _he thought _Why is it still haunting me? It's coming more and more frequently now, and getting louder each time. _He continued debating weather or not he should tell his friends or not, when a soft sigh came form behind him. He turned his head around and saw that Sora had woken up.

"What are you doing up so early?" she asked as she yawned.

"Just thinking," he whispered. Sora laughed quietly.

"That's a surprise," she whispered as she came and sat next to him. "But really, what are you doing?"

"Umm..." he started, still not sure if he should tell anybody yet. Sora saw the concern in his eyes, and grasped his hand in her own.

"Follow me," she said standing up, and swiftly walking out of the room. Tai followed her, knowing that he didn't have a choice. They passed by the the many similar corridors, and the windows showed that the break of dawn was fast approaching. The two friends walked in absolute silence, no noise could be heard, since the castle was still slumbering peacefully. As they rounded another corner, Tai finally realized where Sora was leading him. In front of him lay a short hallway; Stain glass windows showed brilliantly in the light of the fast approaching dawn, and at the very end was a marble door, polished white and glistening as if it were made of diamonds instead. The two friends exchanged glances, both smiling. "So you remember?" she asked.

"How could I forget?" he asked. They proceeded towards the door and they both placed a hand on the doorknob, opening it together. This was one of the smallest rooms in the entire castle, but the magic is hidden behind the door. All the walls were made of stain glass, and the floors and ceilings had a blue ceiling with white clouds on them. The sun had reached over the mountains and was gleaming into the beautiful room, making it glow like a firey bowl of fruit.

"This is where we made a promise to be best friends, and that no matter what we'd trust the other with our lives." Sora said as she, too, marvelled at the greatness the room had.

"And that we'd tell the other anything," Tai finished, realizing that Sora had made him come here because she wanted him to tell her what was going on.Sora elbowed him in the ribs.

"You've been doing a lot of thinking lately, and that's not normal for you," she said laughing.

"I can't tell you Sor," he said, his eyes facing the floor. Sora looked a little shocked.

"Why?" she demanded.

"It would put you and all of Windy Glen in great danger. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you or your mom because I told you what we're really doing here." Sora was angered slightly, but it gave her some comfort that it wasn't a big secret, just that whatever burden he was carring was dangerous for anyone else to know about. "But I did get you something since it was 6 years ago today that we met," a small smile played his lips. Sora cocked her head slightly as she watched Tai fish for something in his pocket. The item his hand cluched made Sora's eyes widen. It was a necklace with a dazzling red and orange stone, that seemed like a small stone on fire in the morning light. "I'm guessing you like it," he said smiling. Sora glanced from him to the necklace to him again, she didn't know what to say, but the smile on her face said it all. As fast as lightning she gave hm a bone-crushing hug. "I love it," she said quiely. Tai beamed, and carefully placed it around her neck. A comfortable silence hung in the air, but it was soon interrupted by a shriek coming from somewhere in the great castle, but it was so loud it sounded as though the person who screamed was standing next to them. Not a moment later the door broke down, sending marble chunks flying at them. They ducked and covered their heads just in time, but as the smoke and debree cleared, it revealed a sinister looking black angel digimon. "So we meet again Sage," she said smirking. She took a few steps forward, glass from some of the broken windows crushing uner her black boots. "Don't try to escape this time, we've got the entire castle surrounded and I doubt you'd want to leave your friends behind." Tai's eyes darkened. "Wat is she talking about?" Sora whispered harshly. Tai gaze turned to Sora. "That's what I couldn't tell you. Myself and the others are Sages." Sora's eyes widened. "Yes, and they've been barely escaping our grasps time and time again, but now..." her eyes flickered," I believe we have claimed our prize." In a flash she had her cold hand around Tai's neck and Sora's hands were roughly thrown behind her back. "Of course, not only do we have 4 of the Sages, but now we have your little girlfriend," she said the smirk still remaining in her face. Tai said nothing, but a faint orange glow formed around him, and LadyDevimon tore her hand from his neck in rage, steam raising from her palm. Sora took this chance to get one of her hands free, and throw her into the ground. "Come on we've got to get out of here," Tai cried. The two began running as fast as they could towards the room they slept in last night. "Do you think they'll be there?" Sora asked, the two were easily keeping up with the other's pace. "I don't know, the Dark Masters may have already found them." he replied, his eyes narrowing further. "Let's hope not," Sora said. Both started to run faster at the thought of their friends being held captive. They ran towards the door, but found it locked. "What do we do now."

"Stand back," Tai said quickly. Sora obeyed, and watched as a red, orange, and yellow glow formed around his hands. He placed one hand on the door, and in seconds, lit on fire and disappeared, leaving a pile of ashes where it once was.

"I guess you really are a Sage then," Sora said in awe. Tai turned to her and nodded. "Then you and the others better get out of here now," she said sternly.

"I'm not going to leave you here," he replied. "You don't seriously think you can face against all the Dark Masters do you?" Sora shook her head solemly.

"No, but it will give you and the others a chance to escape," she said sadly," you know this place almost as well as I do, so you can get out easily."

"Sora I'm not leaving you to die. Either you come with us, or-" his voice trailed off as one of the Elemental Crests began to glow silvery and levitate toward her. Sora clapsed it in her hand and gasped as a silver sphere engulfed her and a bright light flashed. Tai sheilded his eyes until the light cleared, and when it did Sora was standing just as she was before, only her eyes were very wide. A silver shirt hung loosely around her shoulders, dark blue hip-hugger jeans fit snuggly around her legs, her auburn hair now had silver streaks throughout it, and her eyes were a richer shade of crimson with silver hints. After Tai got over his shock he smirked. "Looks like you have to come with us now." Sora looked up at him, her eyes still wide.

"So I-I'm a Sage?" she half asked half said.

"The Sage of Wind." he added. But the comfortable silecnce that hung in the air was interrupted by cruel laughter echoing around the entire castle.

"You foolish children," the voice boomed," So naieve, and yet the only fault to my plans." The owner of the vengeful voice stepped from out of the shadows and into the dim light.

"Piedmon," Tai said with clenched fists.

"Ah, the Sage of Flame. Still hearing those cruel voices in your head?" he said smirking. Tai's eyes grew wide. But Sora quickly grabbed his hand and they ran into the room behind them.

"We have to jump out the window, it's our only chance." she said quickly. Tai nodded, Piedmon's words buzzing in his head.

"But wait, if we jump out this window, then we'll crash into the forest floor." he said as they neared it.

"Yea, but if I use the powers of wind," she said smirking. They jumped into the open air, free-falling briefly, until Sora made a line with her hand in front of both of them, and they began to slow until they reached the ground.

"Guys over here," a familiar voice shouted to them.

"Matt!" they both cried in relief. They rushed toward Matt and saw that Tar and Kari had made it out safely, too.

"Glad to see you both are ok," Tar said smiling.

"You too," Sora replied.

"Yea it's great that were all back together, but we never found the Sage of Wind," Kari exclaimed.

"Actually..." Tai started. He motioned to Sora and the three of them gasped. Tar smacked her hand on her forehead.

"Why didn't we think of it earlier." she said laughing.

"Well, welcome to the 'We've gotta save the world' club," Matt said laughing. Sora beamed slightly.

"So where are we heading next?" she asked out of curiousity.

"To the Earth Kingdom," Kari replied.

"Tai why are you being so quiet?" Tar asked. He looked up from his trance-like state and smiled.

"Oh, um...I'll tell you later," he replied. They nodded, glad that Tai was finally going to tell them what was bothering him. Maybe after he told them, both his and their journey to the Earth Kingdom would be a lot smoother. But for now they just need to keep walking, away from the grand city burning into ashes behind them, and onto their next destination, the Earth Kingdom, and the Earth Sage.

me: yay! i finally got this chapt. done! lol. ok well...what will happen in their next adventure, find out in my next chapt. R&R! Later y'all!

_**battousai-clau**: yay! you rock my friend! and yea i know i'm a great writer (lol j/k) glad u like the story, and hope u liked this chapt, it was hard to figure out what to write for it. lol. and, again, sry it took me soooo freakin long to update, i've been really busy, and i'll get the next chapt up as soon as I can ). Peace out!_

_**dbzgtfan2004**: yay! thanx soooo much for the review! U ROCK! sry for the long wait, i'll get the next chapt up as soon as i can! and yea TAIORA4EVA! later dude!_

_**JyouraKoumi: **say wha! whatever dude._

_**Crimson G: **Thanx sooooooo much for the review ), U my friend are AWESOME! and trust me I've read a ton of ur stories, but i've been at my dad's the past few weeks and well, let's just say his pc SUCKS! so i can't review anyone sniff sniff but when i get back to my mom's, i'll be sure to review you! Later!_

_**star**: yay! ur an awesome reviewer! and of course my fic is gonna be Taiora, it's my fave couple hoped ya liked this chapt. i knew how much u wanted to read it cuz of ur review ) Later my friend!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha**: dude, U TOTALLY ROCK! yay! glad u luv my story, and i'll update ASAP, lol. Peace out!_

_**Rayana Wolfer**: yay! glad ur back! i luv ur reviews, they're always long and u tell me what ur fav parts r and all that ). Yea, i wanted Hiroaki to be the loyal GL of Frozen City, after all where do u think Matt and Tk get it from and the voice...I'M NOT TELLIN! lol, you'll find out later,lol. (and i luv Tai 2! he's my fave, and i'm A LOT like him lol) and about him and Matt, i want it to have some aspects of the show, so there will be arguments and stuff, but not a lot. i have a gd relationship with all my friends, sooooo...like i wouldn't really know how to have them have a bad relationship (dude, that sentence made my brain hurt lol) plus i like my writin to be different . THANX FOR THE REVIEW! U ROCK! Later! _


	4. Earth Kingdom

me: I'm back! yay! sry it took me sooooooooooo long to update! my computer's been having issues, so i could only go online at school, and i only got like 10 minutes to write, so anyway, here's my next chapt, and as most of you have probably guessed; Mimi is in this one. yay! yea, i've relaized that Earth Kingdom is on Avatar, but it was the only thing i could think of! soooooo...yea. Ok, so enjoy my friends! $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Sora glanced around the campsite. All was quiet. Breezes blew around all five of them, and made the fire that provided heat and light dance and ficker. She laughed slightly. I guess it's a good thing we have a Fire Sage wih us, she thought. She glanced over at her best friend. Tai was lying on his stomach, his head resting on his palms as the flames made his firey eyes glisten. Kari was sitting next to her, her eyelids drooping from the exhaustion of walking most of the day. Tar was sitting under the shadowy figure of a tree, almost invisable in the darkness that surrounded her. And Matt was standing far from the flames, leaning against a tree trunk with his arms crossed over his chest. He stared intently at the dancing flames. As she glanced around once more she realized how much each person in the group matched their element. Tai was wild and unpredictabe, as well as bold, couragous, and a born leader. Kari was pure and innocent, although she was no pushover, and light dwelled within her. Tar, although fun and somewhat wild like Tai, was rather mysterious. No one ever really knew what was going on in her head, and she liked it that way, but she had the upmost trust in her friends. Matt was rebellous and somewhat of a loner, but friendship was very important to him. Anyone who knew him could see that.

Earlier that day Tai's thoughts were not with the group, probably not on Digitania for that matter. And from what Tar had told her, every now and then he would act the same way. Matt had told her of when they were leaving the Frozen City he said something about a voice, but he had not thought anything of it until now. All this had started when their quest began.

Tai glanced around the clearing, everyone was concentrating on their own thoughts. He cocked his head slightly, wondering what was flowing through each of their minds at this moment. He took a deep breath, wanting the endless silence to stop.

"Guys," he said. Everyone jumped slightly at the broken silence, and turned their heads in his direction. "Umm...I guess you've been wondering why I've been so out of it lately." Now everyone's attention was completely focused on him.

"Yea," Tar said as she approached the fire. Matt also joined the circle surrounding the fire.

"It's because...I've been hearing these-" he stuttered," these voices." he finished.

"Voices?" Sora asked.

"What kind of voices?" Matt asked.

"The type that threaten you and your friends." he finished his gaze returning to the flames. The other 4 members of the group exchanged glances, as if silently voting on who should press the matter further. All eyes turned to Sora. She nodded and sat next to Tai.

"Tai," she murmered softly. She placed her hand beneath his chin, so his eyes met hers. For a moment Sora couldn't find words, his eyes, usually full of life and adventure, were full of concern and wonder_. This must be really bothering him _she thought. "What exactly does this voice say, maybe we can help."

Tai bit his lower lip and though about it for a moment. "Something like...your power will be mine, and it always gives me these really intense headaches."

"That's weird, none of us have heard these voices, and we all control an element like you," Kari thought aloud.

"Hmmm... somehow, Tai, you must be different from the rest of us," Tar added. Tai shrugged.

"Well," he said, trying to lighten the dull mood hanging through the air,"who do you think is the next sage?" The group thought about it for a moment.

"No idea," Sora said at last, "but my friend Mimi lives in the Earth Kingdom, so maybe she'll help us out."

"Pink princess." Tai said smirking.

"Yes goggle head," Sora added also smirking.

"Come on you guys Mimi's not that bad," Matt said chuckling lightly.

Tar chuchled under her breath. "Ok before I say something I regret, we should all get some sleep. The Earth Kingdom is at least 2 days distance from here."

"Tar's right. We don't want the Dark Masters catching up to us either," Kari added. Everyone shuddered at the thought of the Dark Masters. And with a few good nights and sweet dreams everyone rested their heads on the grassey earth and fell into a well-needed sleep. Except one.

Matt was laying on his back staring at the vast sky above. His thoughts drifted towards the pink blossom of the Earth Kingdom. He met her the same day he met Tai, Tar, and Sora. Tai and Mimi would tease each other all the time, but always made the other laugh. Sora and Mimi were perfect opposites, but became the best of girlfriends (A/N: not sexually duh... just like girl BFFs). Tar and Mimi were also opposites, but could talk to one another as if they'd been friends for life. And him, well he had always had a special place in his heart for her. She was just like a bright pink blossom in a forest of sameness. She was girly and delicate, but at the same time unique and sincere. She was always the one that most understood him; why he was such a 'lone wolf' as some call him. But he hadn't seen her in years, and now that he had learned that he would once again lay eyes upon her smiling face again, it left a nervous knot in his stomache as well as an unbelievable joy that clouded in his heart. With thoughts of her as well as the rest of his friends he finally drifted off into a deep sleep.

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While the 5 Sages slept peacefully, the Dark Masters began to storm the rest of the forest region.

"Next time I see that brat I'll ring his scrawny little neck," Lady Devimon raged as she wrapped a white bandage around her charred hand.

"Relax Miss. When we find the Sages you can kill the two you said to have humiliated you." Piedmon said grinning deviously.

"So they've found 5 of the 10 Sages." Puppetmon said as he sat on the black vine throne that belonged to him.

"Yes. Fire, Shadow, Ice, one half of Light, and Wind. The other half left is Earth, Electricity, Water, the other half of Light, and Darkness." Lady Devimon replied.

"They know all that by now. They also have the Elemental Crests. All they need now is the 10 Shards of Unity, which they already know about as well. And when all the Sages are back together we won't stand a chance." Puppetmon complained loudly.

"That's why we must destroy them. If we don't, then all the elements will be against us, and eventually they will get the shards back along with their gift." Piedmon added.

"Next time we meet, they're dead." Lady Devimon proclaimed

Sora tossed and turned recklessly in her sleep. Images filling her mind. Images of Darkness, Betrayal, Rage, and Tears. She was lost in a sea of black darkness, voices taunting her.

_Did you really believe I was your friend?_

_Join me or your loved ones will pay the ultimate price._

_Your power over the elements has come to a bloody end._

Each one was a faint hissing voice; like that of a demonic snake. She thought she would be lost in this misty shadow realm for eternity; forgotten by her friends and taunted by these horrid voices, when suddenly she heard a faint but soothing voice wash over her, calling to her. It washed the black images from her mind and replaced it with a faint glow. Her eyes snapped open, Tai was looking at her with concern in his eyes.

"Sora are you ok?" he asked. She rubbed her eyes, the nigtmare still filling her mind.

"I-I'm ok," she stuttered.

"You're lying," he said with his arms crossed.

"Just a bad dream, that's all." she protested. He gave her a stern look.

"Well it must've been a pretty bad dream with the force of that hit on the head you gave me." "Oh, sorry," she said sheepishly, blushing lightly. He gave her a small smile.

"But, I guess, if you don't tell anyone, I'll tell you what happened."

"Promise," he replied.

"Ok, I was...hearing these awful voices. And darkness was just everywhere, and-"

"You felt totally alone, like no one cared about you?" he finished. She stared at him wide-eyed. "How'd you know I was going to say that?" she asked.

"That's what happens to me when I hear those voices, also I get these pouding migrains." he replied.

"I wonder if the others get the same sort of thing." she thought aloud.

"Maybe." he trailed off, "but anyways, we should get some sleep, like Tar said, the Earth Kingdom is pretty far from here." Sora nodded, but didn't feel like sleeping after nearly drowning in her own thoughts. She feared the darkness creeping back into her mind, and the possibility of never waking from the eternal terror. She glanced at Tai, he had layed back down with his eyes closed, but she knew he wasn't sleeping. For some strange reason his hands were trembling, and not from chill. _Perhaps he feels this same darkness I feel_. She thought. She relucantly rested her troubled head on the cool earth, but she moved closer to Tai. Somehow the dream had been kept at bay near his preasence, and she didn't want it returning. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

"How much farther are we from the Earth Kingdom?" Tar asked Kari who was holding the yellow parchment that was their only guide to the Sages.

"Looks like we'll be able to get there by tomorrow," she replied, "if we don't run into trouble along the way."

The sun was still high in the sky, and shown through the tree tops like glowing spider webs. The path had been smooth, probably from use of travelers and traveling merchants, and as far as the eye could see there was nothing but looming trees that shaded the ground.

Suddenly Kari stopped. "Kari what's-"

She hissed a sharp "Sshh" and the group as well as the forest seemed to obey her. Her eyes glazed the path before them, and her ears listened intently to the absolute silence. "I hear something; like voices. About...3 yards from here, and approaching fast." Confused looks were given to her, but the seriousness she possesed told them she wasn't joking. She rushed into the brush that lined the path like a gateway to darkness, but still the others followed in silence.

"What does Kari mean by 'she hears something'?" Tar asked Tai. He shrugged.

"No idea," he replied," her senses have always been better than ours but...not like this." "Maybe it's her power." Matt said. All heads turned in his direction. "You don't remember? I always heard that the Sages, us, had some sort of gift. I don't know which one we possses, but I think it has something to do with the Ten Shards."

"Yea. I remember something like that in a story my mom told me," Sora added.

"Guys, the voices are getting louder. Ssh." Kari whispered. And, as Kari said, the voices did get louder, and not long after; three figures on horse-back came galloping along the path.

"Are we there yet?" A boy with spikey redish-brown hair complained. He rode a chestnut brown steed.

"For the thousanth time Davis NO!" snapped a girl with violet hair and round glasses. She rode a pure cream colored mare.

"Uhh...can you two quit arguing for two seconds?" Asked a familiar voice, riding a black stallion.

"Mimi?" Sora whispered, wide-eyed.

"No way! Are you sure?" Tai whispered. Sora nodded.

"I would if Yolie wouldn't start these fights." Davis replied.

"I start these fights!" Yolie outburst. Mimi pulled the reins on her horse to get him to stop. "Would you two SHUT UP!" she screamed, "You've been driving me crazy since we left. Now if we plan on making it to Windy Glen by tomorrow we've all got to get along."

"Yea, I don't think I could get along with that." Yolie said rolling her eyes.

"I heard that!" Davis yelled. "Hey, what's that?" he asked as a few bushes rustled besides them.

"Show yourself," Yolie cried, placing a hand on the hilt of her dagger.

"Now is that any way to treat old friends?" a familiar voice asked.

"Put down your weapons. I'd know that annoying voice anywhere." Mimi said laughing. As Davis and Yolie lowered their weapons Tai and Tar revealed themselves from the turf.

"Tai Tar," Mimi squealed as she jumped off her horse and rushed over to them and gave them a bone crushing hug.

"Go-od to see you too Mimi." Tar rasped.

"Yea, but can't, breath." Tai added through gasps.

"Oh sorry," she said releasing them.

"Mimi!" another familiar voice cried excitedly.

"Sora!" The two girls rushed over to one another and hugged.

"It's been too long," Sora said.

"Way too long." Mimi agreed. Matt and Kari emerged themselves from the bushes as well. "Matt, Kari!" Mimi exclaimed as she rushed towards them as well.

"Are we missing something?" Davis exclaimed after watching Mimi's reactions to the group. "Well, I know you're missing a brain." Yolie snapped. Davis fumed.

"I am not!" he cried.

"Oh sorry guys," Mimi said when she realized she had forgotten all about them. "These are some of my best friends that I haven't seen in ages. Although they haven't changed much at all."

"Hey and what do you mean by 'I know that annoying voce anywhere.'" Tai asked crossing his arms over his chest as what she said finally sunk in. Mimi laughed.

"Yep, same old goggle-head Tai,"

"Yep, and same old Pink Princess, who is still living up to her title." he replied noticing her pink outfit.

"Sure am." she said laughing.

"So Meems what are you dong so far from Earth Kingdom?" Tar asked.

"A group from Digitopia came to Earth Kingdom the other day, spreading news that Digitopia was in ruins due to the Dark Masters, and that the Dark Masters were traveling toward Frozen City and Windy Glen. I was really worried about all of you, so my friends Davis and Yolie and myself were going to Windy Glen to warn them." she replied.

"Well uhh...better late than never I guess," Kari said, trying tho lighten the dark mood that was bestowed over the group as Mimi told her tale.

"What do you mean?" she asked fearfully.

"Windy Glen is..." Matt started.

"Gone," Sora finished softly, with her head down.

"And so is Frozen City," Tar said, glancing at Matt, who's emotions were still masked.

"Oh no." Mimi exclaimed. "So all of your homes are..."

"Yes. And what happened to our families is unknown." Tai added, his fists clenched.

"Well then you all must stay, at least a day or two, at Earth Kingdom." she insisted. The companions glanced at one another, silently voting on wheather they should tell Mimi of their true purposes of going to Earth Kingdom.

"Sure Meems," Tai said after he recieved nods from the other Sages.

"Come on then!" she squealed excitedly. "You can ride on our horses with us."

Moments later Matt rode with Mimi; Tai and Sora with Davis; and Tar and Kari with Yolie, and all were galloping towards the Earth Kingdom.

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They galloped on and on through the maze of trees, stopping now and then to rest and chit-chat.

"So you guys were heading for Earth Kingdom any way." Mimi said, "but I know you have other reason for coming then to visit me. And it has something to do with how all your eyes have changed color."

"We've learned from past experiences that sharing this info has costly consequences, but Mimi should know, at least." Tar whispered to Tai. He nodded in agreement.

"Plus she could help us find the Sage, she knows everybody there" he added. They all turned their attention to Mimi, Davis, and Yolie. "Ok Meems, we'll tell you. But it's a huge secret."

"Yea, you can't tell anyone." Kari added.

"I promise." She said sincerely. She cast a deadly glare at Davis and Yolie.

"We promise too." they said quickly, fearing Mimi's gaze.

"Ok, well, we're 5 of the 10 Sages." Matt said. Mimi looked at each of them, and after a moment's hesitiation she burst out laughing. "You-You've gotta be-be kidding me," she said holding her sides with laughter. "Sages! HA HA HA HA!" Suddenly she felt a strong wind surround her.

"We're not kidding Mimi!" Tai exclaimed glaring at her. She returned the glare, but noticed that his eyes really looked like they were on fire.

"What if we prove it to you. Will you believe us then?" Matt asked cooly.

"Sure, I'd buy it then" Mimi replied returning to her usual happy nature.

"I'll go first." Tar said quickly. With no objections, she closed her dark eyes, her elemental crest began to glow a dark blue and the shadows around the clearing began to move and form, circling around her ankles and gowing up until they covered her head in a black fog. Her eyes shown intensley as they began glowing a bright white, the spinning of the shadows ceased, and Tar was no where in sight. On the ground though, a black shadow remained; it looked like a phantom with white flamming eyes, and it moved swifty across the ground until reaching the opposite side of the clearing. Then a bright flash of black light flashed throughout the clearing, causing everyone to shield their eyes. Tar stood where the shadow had once been.

Mimi was dumbstruck, speechless, head spinning. "How did youi do that!" she screamed in amazement.

"Magic." Tar replied simply.

"So can the rest of you guys do stuff like that too!" Davis asked, his eyes dazzling.

"I'll go next," Kari said standing up and walking a ways away from the group. Her elemental crest, too, began to shine a bright pink. Her hands had a white and pink aura forming around them, and her eyes were glowing like orbs. She held her arms up to the night sky, and the aura around her hands blinked a few times, then out of her finger tips small pink and white stars showered through the night sky.

"Wow." Mimi said as she watched a miniture fireworks display, her eyes reflecting the stars that Kari had created.

"That was awesome!" Davis exclaimed running over to her. "You must be the Sage of Light." Kari gave him a questioning look.

"How'd you know that." she asked simply.

"Cuz the Light Sage is like the angel of the Sages, and I can see why." he said flirting obviously. Kari rolled her eyes and gave her siblings the 'Help' signal with her eyes. They snickered, but didn't move. She sighed.

"Uhh...Thanks Davis." she said walking back to the group.

"You can quite drooling now Davis." Yolie snapped.

"Jealous?" he asked as he took his seat next to her.

"Oh yea real jealous. "The Sage of Light is an Angel just like you" Pu-lease." she said sacastically.

Sora still didn't have full control over her powers yet, so she wanted to skip her turn, Tai didn't want to burn the whole forest down, and Matt didn't want freeze everyone and everything, so they skipped their turns as well.

Before they knew it the entire forest had grown still, and they all were weary from their travels, so after choosing the order of who was going to take watch they all collapsed to a well-needed sleep.

Matt wanted to keep first watch. Tai had said it first, but Matt told him he needed to clear his head of a few things, so relucantly Tai agreed. Now he sat, staring of into the fire that flickered before him. His thoughts were so jumbled that he feared they would never be sorted again.

First there were his thoughts of him being the Sage of Ice. Half of his mind kept telling him that this was all a bad dream he would wake from any time soon. The thought of having the power to control a blizzard or freeze an ocean was a little too wild for him to comprehend_. How are the others so easy to accept it_? he wondered.

Second, he was worried. Worried for his friend Tai. The voices he had been hearing were having a dramatic effect on him. And for reasons unknown to him, the Dark Masters seemed to be more persistant to capture him than the rest of them_. Perhaps we will never know why _he thought.

But what was clouding his brain the most was a girl with honey colored hair and hazel eyes. He wasn't going to deny the fact that he had a crush on her when he was younger, but what about his feelings for her now? And more importantly, how did she feel about him?

"Matt." His thoughts were interuppted as a soft whisper came from where his friends were sleeping. He turned his head in the direction of the voice, and his eyes met with the very person he was pondering about moments before.

"Hey Mimi." he said softly. She grinned and took a seat next to him. "How come you're not asleep?"

She shrugged. "Just not tired I guess." But Matt could tell she was lying. He gave her a stern gaze, and she sighed. "Ok, it's not that. All that you told me; about you being the Sages, and you looking for the Sage of Earth. Doesn't that put you all in a lot of danger?" Matt nodded solemly. "I-I just don't want you and the others to get hurt. When I heard about the attack at Digitopia, I was so afraid for you guys that I left Earth Kingdom immediately. Then I heard by some travellers that there were no known survivors from either city and that the Dark Masters were heading towards my home."

"Well, now you know we're all ok." Matt replied.

"Yes, but, what of Earth Kingdom?" she said shuddering.

"We'll take on whatever we find in Earth Kingdom tomorrow together, ok." he said confidently.

"Thanks Matt." Mimi said hugging his shoulders.

"Sure." he responded smiling softly. She grinned and walked back to where everyone was sleeping. Matt turned his attention back to the flames after watching her leave.

"Hey." another voice said, breaking his thoughts again. Matt whipped his head to the side and saw Tai.

"Hey." he replied.

"Thought you might want to get some sleep." he said, but Matt noticed his face had lost color and he was trembling.

"Did the voices come back?" Matt asked as Tai placed his hands within the fire to stop the shaking.

"Yea, and I can't go back to sleep." he replied.

"K, well, see you tomorrow then." he said turning and walking away.

"Glad you finally talked to Mimi." Tai called after him smirking. Matt turned his head, rolled his eyes, and started walking again.

After a restless night the group was again galloping towards Earth Kingdom. They all walked in silence, wondering what they would find when they reached it.

After another hour they finally reached ome of the large green hills that surrounded Earth Kingdom. Smoke was floating from behind it. Mimi, Davis, and Yolie immediatly made their horses charge up the hill, so the rest of the group hung on in fear of falling off. Mimi was first to reach the top, and she stopped dead in her tracks when she gazed at the city. When the rest saw the great Earth Kingdom, they only saw ruins. Tears rolled down Yolie and Mimi's eyes, and Davis didn't say a word.

"Our home." Yolie whispered. "I-It's-"

"Gone." Davis burst angrily. Mimi jumped off her horse, and Matt jumped after, the others followed suit.

"Meems." Sora said cautiously as she walked towards her and hugged her shoulders. Mimi's eyes remained closed. She clenched her fists, and when her eyes opened they were full of pure anger.

"Guys!" Tai shouted as something caught his eye. Everyone turned their heads and saw what he had seen. Two black figures floated above where the GL's grand castle had once loomed in the center of town.

"Piedmon." Tar hissed.

"Puppetmon and LadyDevimon too, by the looks of it." Tai said as he pulled out his mini telescope.

"Do you think they found the Sage?" Kari asked nervously. Just as she said that, one of the Elemental Crests around her neck started to glow a faint green. She lifted it over her head and it floated to Mimi. Her eyes incredibly wide, she placed it around her neck.

"Mimi, you're a Sage!" Yolie exclaimed. Mimi remained in an awed silence, as she gazed at the golden ring that was glowing green. Suddenly a cyclone of emerald colored leaves formed around her. When it passed Mimi's eyes had turned a deep, soulfull green, green highlights streaked through her honey colored hair, an emerald haulter top now hung where her pink shirt once was, and a green skort that barely reached her knees blowed in the breeze.

"Does that answer your question?" Tar asked.

"Wait. I can't be a...a...Sage. I don't diserve it." she cried.

"Meems, the Elemental Crest chooses the Sage. So it must think you diserve it." Tai said reassuringly.

"Yea, and I can't think of anyone better to wear the Earth Elemental Crest." Kari said smiling widely.

"Really?" Mimi said, almost at the brink of tears. The entire group nodded.

"You guys had better get out of here." Davis said as his eyes wandered toward the ruined Earth Kingdom.

"You two can come with us." Sora invited.

"Thanks, but we'd only be slowing your quest." Yolie replied.

"Yea, my older sister Jun lives in a small village East of here. We could stay there for now." Davis added.

"But know that our hearts are with you, and that we wish you well." Yolie said.

"Thanks you guys. Even if you do get on my nerves sometimes, you're some of the best friends friends I've ever had." Mimi said sincerly. They nodded gravely, but the corners of their mouths curved into a small smile.

"If you take the horses you'll be able to get out of here faster." Davis said motioning to the three noble steeds beside them.

"Thanks, but we'll eventually have to leave them somewhere, otherwise we'll stick out more than we already are." Matt said. Yolie thought for a moment.

"My uh...friend lives in another village north of here, towards Electric Summit, where you guys are heading next I'm guessing. His name is Ken, and he'd be happy to help out." Yolie replied.

"Ok, we'll do that." Mimi said.

"Now off with you, before you're spotted." Davis said quickly. The 6 Sages gave them a silent farewell, then rushed onto the horses, and began galloping through the maze of trees.

Meanwhile up in the skys Piedmon, LadyDevimon, and Puppetmon glared at the charred ground at their feet.

"They never showed up." Puppetmon growled.

"On the contrary," Piedmon said pointing at three horses galloping in the distance. "I believe we just found them."

"Then let's kill the brats." LadyDevimon exclaimed as she jerked forward.

"Not so fast miss." Piedmon said grasping her wrist.

"Unhand me, I plan on making those pests pay." she yelled.

"Patience my good woman. We know where they're going, all we have to do is beat them there." he said calmly.

"Yea, Electric Summit you better beware, cuz you're next." Puppetmon said smirking.

me: Yay! i'm finally done! phew, ok no worries my dad FINALLY decided to fix the damn pc, so my next chapt should (i hope) come sooner. But who can tell with OUR pc rolls eyes ok soooo, what will happen to the Sages at their next goal Electric Summit? What did Sora's dream mean? And Why am I asking you all these questions? Find out on my next chapt. Peace Out ya'll.

_**YamiTai**: Yay! glad u luv it! sry to keep u waiting so long. But hopefully next chapt WILL come sooner mumbles it better! lol, Thanks 4 the review U ROCK DUDE! _

_**JyouraKoumi**: What the hell do yams have to do with my story rolls eyes quit reviewing you ass hole! _

_**moonlightprincess**: Thanx 4 the review! yea i luv Mimi too, even if she's the exact opposite of me, SHE ROX! Yay! lol, hope you like this chapt since it's Mimato and about Mimi . YOU ROCK GIRL! _

_**STAR**: YAY YAY YAY! sounds like you're as big a Taiora fan as me! YAY! luv ur reviews they are freakishly AWESOME! lol, sry to keep u waitin for my next chapt, damn this pc! slaaps side of it, and sparks fly hehe. And course there's gonna be more Taiora, although this chapt was mainly mimato, i put a little Taiora in it also . GREAT REVIEW DUDE! Peace out! oh and did i ever tell u that...U ROCK! TAIORA4EVA_

_**Rayana Wolfer**: YAY! me likey action . And i thought that my two favs fighting with most of the same skills would be REALLY kool . And I gav u a small idea to wat's gonna happen, but now, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT's GONNA HAPPEN, lol . so expect LOTS of surprises. And Tai...u're just gonna have to wait and find out smiles innocently LUV UR REVIEWS! U ROCK! (lol, do i say that too much thinks about it nah..) _

_P.S. glad u like my replys i give replys cuz ur rerviews r one of the reasons i luv to write. _

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha**: lol, Well u do rock, lol. And glad u love my fics UR AWESOME! Later!_

_**Crimson G**: Yep Yep, and thanx for the great review . Now u're probably wonderin wat's gonna happen next U ROCK!_

_**battousai-clau**: YAY! well u knew a little Taiora was commin some time soon . TAIORA ROX! they're my fav couple too, well obviously, lol. Sry it took me soooo long to update lip quivers but got it FINALLY! lol. AWESOME REVIEW U ROCK! LATER DUDE! _


	5. Electric Summit

me: Hey everybody! i want to apologize AGAIN for my last cahpt. comming soooooo late, but this one should come A LOT sooner, so no worries u guys! ok then enjoy!

"Are we there yet?" Mimi whined. The entire group groaned.

"No Mimi!" they cried in unsion.

"I understand that we had to get rid of the horses, but why so early in our quest?" Mimi complained.

"The sooner we got rid of the horses the sooner we'd be safe. I mean 6 travellers on 3 horses makes it seem that we were in a rush to escape something, and we are coming from where the Dark Masters have already struck, so we kind of stick out." Kari explained.

"But, still, don't you think 6 travelers travelling together at all makes us stand out as well?" she pointed out. The whole group froze.

"She's got a point." Matt agreed.

"So should we split up?" Sora asked.

"No, we're stronger together, if we split up and come across danger then we could easily be defeated." Matt argued.

"But if we all stick together we're sitting ducks." Tai shot back.

"I'd rather be a sitting duck than powerless against the Dark Masters." Matt said, his temper and voice rising.

"Did you even think that if we're not all crowded together than we won't be spotted as easily, and then we won't need to use our powers." Tai yelled angrily. The two remained glaring at each other, neither daring to step down. Tar, fed up with both of them, stepped in between the feuding boys.

"Ok, how about you meet each other half way; we'll split into two groups of three, that way we'll still be in a group, but we won't stand out as much." she compromised.

"Deal." They said at the same time. "At the fork in the road coming up we'll take different paths, and meet up at Electric Summit." Tai added.

"Agreed." they all voted.

And just as the map showed, a fork in the road soon approached them. Tai, Sora, and Kari went right, and Matt, Mimi, and Tar went left. But in the dark shadows that the cavern of tightly woven trees created, an evil creature listened to their plans intently. It was a Ri-Nan (look at chapt 3 for more info). It growled under it's breath as it watched the 6 split into two groups.

_Perfect, they're seperated. If the rumors about them are correct then they could be of use to me_. It thought sinisterly, a black medallion on a white chain hung against it's black furred chest. It's red eyes beginning to flicker.In a flash it had disappeared into a fog like smoke and disappeared.

Matt, Mimi, and Tar walked down the road they had chosen, which had become darker and more sinister with each step in the last hour.

"Maybe we should turn back." Mimi said, walking closely to Matt and Tar.

"We've come too far to turn around." Tar disagreed.

"Yea, and that'll be over two hours of our time wasted." Matt added. Mimi nodded reluctantly, but her eyes glanced back and forth, peering through the darkness surrounding her.

"Meems, if it makes you feel better, I'll go ahead in my shadow form and see what's up ahead." Tar reasured.

"That would make me less nervous." Mimi confessed.

"Ok then, be right back." Tar said as her eyes began glowing white and the shadows that cloaked the path in darkness swirled around her from toe to head. In seconds her flat shadow form lay on the ground where she once had, and she sped off toward their new direction. Matt and Mimi waited where they stood, neither daring to move until their friend's safe return. Moments later Tar's shadow was seen racing for them, white eyes gleaming. The same black flash blinded Matt and Mimi and left Tar standing in front of them, panting.

"Did you see anything?" Matt asked.

"Y-Yes. Ahe-ad. Ri-Nans!" she cried through ragged breaths. As if on cue the Ri-Nans leaped from the trees behind and in front of them, enclosing the three in a tight circle.

"Can we fight back?" Mimi asked, a slight fear in her voice, but determination in her glowing green eyes.

"Good question." Tar replied, her eyes also glowing.

"Guess there's only one way to find out." Matt added as a flury of blue formed around his fists. It was the Ri-Nans who attacked first. One lurched for Tar, black fangs dripping with their deadly poison, but Tar quickly formed a black sphere in her palm that fizzed with white sparks and thrust it in the creature's chest. It howled in fury as it hit a nearby tree. After seeing their commrad fail to capture their prey the rest charged the three, fangs barred and claws gleaming. Matt formed 5 shards of ice at his finger tips and threw each one at a different oncoming Ri-Nan, each fadding right through them through their smokey appearance and striking a tree trunk.

"These are shadow creatures, they can't be destroyed with solid things." Tar shouted over the howls and other commotion.

"Then how do we destroy them?" Mimi yelled as she punctured three Ri-Nans with three sharp vines right in the chest. But, again, the vines punctured through thin air as the Ri-Nans dissolved into smoke.

"We need light!" Tar cried. Mimi thought for a second, a thought suddenly hit her. She raised her arms towards the trees hanging overhead and, with her power over Earth, began to move the great trees and allow sunlight into the light depribed path. Matt, catching on to the idea, covered the ground around the hole of light in ice, causing the light to reflect all around them, and the Ri-Nans to back away whimpering.

"We did it!" Mimi cried triumphantly.

"Nope. You did it Mimi." Tar said, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. "And of course Matt helped too." she said giving him a genuine smile. Suddenly a dark figure jumped from within a tree and slashed all three of them, making them loose their balance and fall to the ground, causing them to lose consciousness.

Meanwhile Tai, Sora, and Kari walked down their path, which was much brighter than the others', but much more confusing. The paths intertwined, winding this way and that, making it hard to remember from which way you had come. Because of this, Sora had marked a tree where they had turned each time, so they wouldn't get lost.

"You think the others are having better luck?" Tai thought aloud.

"Who knows?" Kari replied. "The map simply shows that there are two roads and that the two roads both lead to Electric Summit." They continued walking, watching every tree they passsed.

"Is it just me, or do all these trees look exactly alike?" Sora asked.

"Something tells me this isn't an ordinary forest pathway." Tai said after looking at two identical trees. "It's almost like a maze."

"Why would anyone create a maze of trees in the middle of a forest?" Kari wondered. And as they rounded another tree they found their answer. Before them stood a giant black castle that seemed to touch the sky, which by some sorcery had turned cloudy and dark. A moat of thick grimey water lapped against the old but strong stones that made up the castle, and a wooden draw-bridge rested across the moat. No lights were seen through the many windows, except one. At the highest tower a small light flickered.

"Whoa." was all Sora managed to choke out.

"You can say that again." Tai said staring at it wide-eyed. They cautiously exited the woods and walked towards the castle.

"This place gives me the creeps." Kari whispered. The others nodded, eyes transfixed on the structure before them. They continued walking, although their better judgement was screaming for them to turn around. It was as though an invisable force was moving their feet towards the black castle, and didn't stop until they reached two pillars with strange writing on them that repeated the same thing over and over.

_Tutururnun bubacuskuk nunowuw_

_Dudarurkuknunesussquare lulururkuksus wuwituthashinun_

_Tuthashosuse wuwituthash pupowuwerur tutururnun anundud rurunun_

_Fufacuse nunotut tuthashe wuwruratuthuh ofuf evuvilul'sus susonun_

"Huh, what do you think that means?" Tai asked.

"Not sure, but it's sending me vibes that we shouldn't be here." Kari said hugging her arms.

"Kari's right. Something about this place seems...not right." Sora concluded.

"Yea, let's get out of..." Tai started, but clutched his head which was begging to spin and throb.

"Tai you ok?" Sora asked, seeing some color in his cheeks vanish.

"There's something bad here, I can feel it. Let's just go." he said simply. They nodded and retraced their steps, but when they reaced the pillars from where they came from, an invisable layer of magic now covered it.

"What the" Kari said as she traced her hand over the invisable wall.

"We can't get out." Sora said in a fearful voice.

"We're trapped." Tai added.

"Yes trapped like the rats all you humans are." hissed a voice behind them. They turned around and a hooded figure with glowing golden eyes was glaring at them.

"Who are you." Kari demanded.

"Foolish hummans." he said sinisterly. "The warning outside clearly states who I am. But now is not the time to talk." he raised a pale boney hand with long fingernails and black lightning began spark on his fingertips. With barely any force used at all, he shot the three right in the chest with simultanious zaps of black magic, and they collapsed to the ground.

Tar was the first to wake. She looked around the unfamiliar surroundings, wondering _Where am I? _She sat up, only to find herself laying back down due to a stinging pain on her back. Slowly the events of before began flooding her mind; Splitting up, Ri-Nans, pain in her back, then darkness. She gingerly ran two fingers over where three claw-like marks ran over her upper-arm. I_ must have these across my back too, that's why it hurts to sit up _she thought logically. She swiftly moved her eyes in all directions, looking for her friends, but all was dark. Where ever they were in the forest before, they were not there now. She saw a figure opposite where she was, and carefully sat up to get a clearer view of who it was.

"Matt? Mimi? Is that you?" she called to the sleeping figure. She crawled over to the shadow covered person and catiously shook him/her shoulder. Whatever Tar was expecting to happen, she didn't expect this. The figure jumped up, startled, and looked at Tar with eyes glowing a light crimson and a silver aura around her hands.

"Sora!" she cried in shock. Sora instantly powered down and stared at Tar wide-eyed.

"Tar! How did you get here?" she asked, still in shock.

"We were attacked by some Ri-Nans and the last I remember was something hitting me, and now I'm here." she replied. "And you."

"We came across this weird black castle, and when we went inside we all got this bad feeling and started to leave, but the entrance was sealed with a curse. And this guy in a cloak knocked us out using black lightning." Sora finished.

"Strange. It's almost like we were forced apart to bring us here together." Tar thought aloud. Sora nodded in agreement.

"But where are the others?" she asked after realizing they were the only two in the dark room.

"I don't know." Tar said bewildered. "But let's hope they're alright."

Suddenly a small light lit the room. The girls turned their heads and saw a small digimon holding a torch and motioning for them to follow. Not having much of a choice the girls walked towards the Gekomon. (A/N: I guess Gekomon have always lived in castles, lol)

"Where are we?" Sora demanded.

"You're in the Castle of Darkness. A place of cursed evil." the Gekomon said, turning and walking down a long tunnel.

"Why is it cursed?" Tar asked.

"It is because of the king that ruled this forest. Long ago this was a great land, full of happiness and joy. A witch eventually came to live in this once great land. She was a kind and caring sorceress and all the citizens loved her, but the king became jealous. He feared he was loosing his people to a force evil, so he hired an assisian and he killed her. But with the last of her strength, she cast a curse upon this castle."

"The pillars outside." Sora concluded

"So how did you and any others that are here, end up here?" Tar asked.

"It's because of the curse, the one outside that doesn't allow you to leave this place, isn't it?" Sora asked.

"Yes, we are bound here." the Gekomon replied.

"But, who was that figure? The one with the golden eyes?" Sora asked.

"That figure, is a poor soul being controlled by the evil king." Gekomon retorted. "No more questions." Tar and Sora glanced at one another for a brief moment, both wondering what lay in wait for them.

The Gekomon led them through vast hallways, the only light was the small tourch in his hand. They trudged on and on until finally they reached a door, a small humming sound echoed from within it. The Gekomon cautiouslly opened the door and walked inside, Sora and Tar slowly walking behind him. The moment the girls entered they realized something was a miss. Ten doors, all different colors, lined the two walls, five on either side. Sora walked towards the first one she saw; it was pale blue and a chill seeped from the cracks, a small flame was on the door.

"Why would a flame be on an ice door?" Sora wondered aloud, suddenly it hit her."Tai!" she yelled.

"Tar figured what must be happening. "They're trapping us in our opposite elements." she cried. "So our power will be drained."

"Gekomon why are you doing this to us?" Sora demanded.

"Sorry, I really don't want to but-"

"But nothing, you're being a coward, you and every other Gekomon in this place. There's plenty of you, why take orders from this guy." Tar argued.

"Because I surpass his power." a dark voice boomed from the door. They spun around to find a pair of eyes floating in a black mist.

"You're no king, you're a...a..." Sora started.

"Ri-Nan. Yes, good to see the last of the Sages are finally awake." the Ri-Nan said as he returned to a solid state. "I suppose you're wondering how a great king like myself turned into a beast such as this. After that acursed witch banished me to live my days within my own castle, she turned me into a werewolf sort, only I remain a Ri-Nan in form and human in mind."

"And what do you want with us?" Tar asked angrily.

"The power you posess is far greater than my own, and I wish to harness it, and by doing that I can rid my land of this ancient curse once and for all. Plus I plan to make a small profit for myself by selling you to the Dark Masters." he said smirking. Suddenly the cloaked figure appeared at the side of the wicked king.

"Shall I put them in their place sire?" he asked humbly.

"Yes." the Ri-Nan king replied. Black lightning flew from his fingertips and struck them hard enough to knock them into the doors made for them. The Gekomon watched helplessly as the doors closed and locked them within.

_You are a coward. There are plenty of you in this castle. Why do you take orders from him_? Tar's voice echoed in his ears.

"She's right." he whispered.

"What was that, fool?" the Ri-Nan king demanded.

"She was right. I should never have been intimidated by you." he replied forcefully. The other Gekomon in the room stopped what they were doing and looked at their brother with inspiration. "You threaten those smaller than you, but we outnumber you by great numbers. The Sages were right; we were cowards to listen to you!" The other Gekomon cheered and rushed to join their friend. "Release the Sages." he cried. Doors that had been locked were immediatly thrust open and Sora and Tar rushed out, both looking weary from their experience with their opposing elements, but instantly rushing to the side of the Gekomon.

"You help the others, I'll stay and help." Tar said, urging Sora to help the rest of their friends. She nodded and ran to the first door.

"You half-minded fools. You will all pay severly for this treason." the Ri-Nan king shouted over the cries for freedom echoing from the Gekomon.

"Get him!" a Gekomon shouted to his fellows.

"SYMPHONY CRUSHER!" they all cried in unsion. Tar balled her fists and sent an impulsing amount of black energy toward the enemies. The Ri-Nan king screamed in agony as he was ripped apart until he fianlly de-materialized. And the cloaked figure began morphhing; his pale boney hands became smaller and filled with color, the glowing eyes stopped glowing to reveal black orbs, and the figure shrunk till he was no taller than Mimi. He glanced around at the unfamiliar surroundings, then removed the hood from over his head. The Sages recieved a great shock as he did so.

"Izzy!" they all cried in shock.

After the evil Ri-Nan king had been destroyed, the land was free of the curse. The darkness surrounding the land for so long vanished, and it's former beauty was restored. The Gekomon insisted that they stay for helping them to defeat the curse, but it was out of the question.

"We don't want you to be the next victims of the Dark Masters." Kari explained. So with heavy hearts they left the cheery land, but not without a promise from the Gekomon.

"If you need us for any reason we will be here for you."

They didn't travel too far, due to their weakness from being locked in those rooms, but they did reach the base of Electric Summit, Izzy's home. And speaking of Izzy, it turns out he had been a prisioner at the cursed castle for a few weeks.

"I heard about numerous attacks along the coastline, so I went to investigate, but I strayed from the path and found myself trapped within the castle, and that's the last I remember before meeting up with you guys." he answered.

"Whoa, Izzy took a wrong turn, even while he had his computer with him." Tai laughed.

"Now I've seen everything." Matt agreed. Izzy rolled his eyes but laughed with them.

"So the Dark Masters really have invaded Digitania." Izzy concluded.

"Yes." Mimi replied sadly.

"And you guys are 6 of the legendary 10 Sages." Izzy thought aloud.

"Yep." Kari retorted.

"Well, I think I can help you with some of the mysteries of the 10 Sages." he said pulling out his trusty laptop. He punched in a few keys and some text appeared on the screen. "I've been researching the legend for a while. Athough, I guess it's not a legend. Anyway, this is how the legend began. It all started from the Great Goddess who descended onto this land, giving it landforms, water, and life. Then she sent her 10 children to live here as well, and they each possesed a certain trait that they gave to this land as well; Courage, Friendship, Knowledge, Love, Sincerity, Trust, Light, Hope, Reliability, and Dream. And for a while they lived wonderfully, until an evil God became envious of this prosperous new land. He then sent his own children to bring evil to the land as well; Lust, Envy, Hatred, Betrayal, Nightmare, Greed, Lie, Darkness, Enemy, and Rage. They corupted the land, until the 10 children of the Goddess decided to fight back. The fighting seemed to last an eternity, but the God realized he was beginning to loose. So he used one final attack on one of the Goddesses children; Courage, who was the leader of his brothers and sisters, and tried to turn him evil." Izzy finished. "But I don't know what happens next. All I know is the Sages are direct bloodlines from the Goddess, that's why you recieve the same gift her children had as well as, can control one of the elements."

"Wow." was all Tar could manage.

"So we're desedents of one of the Goddesses children." Sora said.

"And if we can figure out which one, we can learn or gift and trait." Mimi finished.

"Now all we need is to find the Sage of Electricity." Kari finished, but as she said that, one of the Elemental Crests around Tar's neck began to glow a bright yellow. It levitated over her head and hovered in front of Izzy before he took it in his hands.

"Prodigious." he whispered, and he carefully placed it over his head. A cyclone of golden sparks flooded around him in a cyclone, and when it passed his eyes were golden, his red hair had purple tips, and a purple shirt with a yellow jacket over it now replaced his origional orange shirt.

"Well, if there's one thing I've learned being a Sage it's that you should expect the unexpected. Welcome to the Sages Izzy." Tar said smiling.

"Another down, just three to go!" Kari exclaimed.

"Seriously. I'm a Sage?" Izzy asked, his eyes widening.

"That would explain why you could shoot black lighting bolts from your fingers when you were evil." Tai said recalling the day's past events.

"Wow." Izzy said breathless. "So where next?" he asked after taking it all in for a moment.

"Looks like we'll be heading to Water Village next." Sora said pulling out the map.

"Ooohh the beach, that's great news I could really use a vacation after all this." Mimi squealed.

"Let's just hope that hasn't been destroyed yet." Matt said.

"I guess we'll find out when we get there then." Tai said, trying to keep everyone's spirits up.

"Ok then. Next stop Water Village Tar cried.

me: YAY! i finished! hope you guys liked the little twist i put in there . It didn't take me as long to write this one so YAY! lol, R&R! and i'll update as soon as i can! thanx ya'll! peace!

_**YamiTai: **Awww...thanx! but u definately rock more, lol. And yea i can't wait for that part either! I already have some cool ideas for it yay! And Sora's dream...yep it's from the other story, good memory, lol. And I'll give you a hint about how she heard it...that's her power. . Hope ya liked this chapt! PEACE OUT!_

_**battousai-clau: **sry dude! my pc has issues and wouldn't let me online for what seemed like EVER! so sry again! hope i wasn't too slow this time, lol. Thanx for the review dude! U ROCK!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinyuashia: **ur welcome . Thanx for the AWESOME review! and the compliments were a nice touch,lol. And yep yep! it was Izzy's home! YAY! u're our grand prize winner! So u get to learn some secret info nobody else will unless they read this reply (lol) Three members of the group are showing signs of their powers; Sora, Tai, and Kari. sssshhhh...iz a secret, lol. AWESOME REVIEW! U ROCK! Later!_

_**mysticalruby: **YAY! glad u like the story! and I thought u guys would like Mimi's outfit . One of my BFFs wears clothes like that, and i thought Mimi would have the same taste, probably . lol. Thanx for the review! U R AWESOME! Peace!_


	6. Water Village

me:Hello peoplez of the world! lol, sry kinda wacky today! Whaz up . Well, i'm hopin i can get this chapt up as fast as i did the last time . Enjoy ya'll!

The group was now climbing up Mt. Infinaty, Izzy was very worried about his home. After all the stories they had told him of how their homes had been destroyed by the Dark Masters, he was eager to see if his friends and family were ok. They climbed for what seemed like an eternity before the saw the large lightening rods that symbolized Electric Summit. Electric Summit suppiled most of Digitania's electricity through giant lightning rods, when lightning hit them it was turned into power and then distributed all across Digitania.

"How far until we reach Electric Summit Izzy?" Sora asked, wind whipping her hair wildly.

"Those are the first lightning rods, and if we keep climbing we should get there by nightfall." he shouted over the winds. Groans echoed from everybody. Izzy laughed a little. "But if we use the lift up here, then we should get there in about 30 minutes."

"Good. I can handle walking for hours, but I don't see how you guys can climb so fast." Mimi said.

Izzy was the first one to the top, since he was used to the climbing.

"Hey Sor, race you to the top." Tai said smirking.

"You're on." she replied, and both took off. Tar and Kari were climbing behind them, Kari chanting to herself to not look down.

"Since when are you afraid of heights?" Tar asked her as she reached for another rock.

"Since we started climbing up the tallest mountain in all of Digitania." she said, biting her lip to keep her from glancing at the ground far below. Matt and Mimi, growing up in different conditions, were at the bottom of the chain.

"Matt. Do - you - think - the - lift - will - be - working?" Mimi panted.

"Probably. Why?" he asked.

"Well, with the luck we've been having since I started on this quest, when we get up there nothing will work." she stated.

"Hmm...maybe, but let's try not to think about it, hopefully it'll work, and we won't have anything to worry about." Matt replied. Mimi nodded, and when she looked up she realized she was finally at the top. Matt pulled himself up onto the ledge and offered his hand to Mimi, which she took gratefully.

"I'm telling you it was a tie." Tai said to Sora.

"You're just saying that because you know you lost." she replied witty.

"I didn't lose. I would've beat you by a lot more if those stupid rocks hadn't nearly made me fall off the mountain." he pouted. (A/N: awww...i luv it when Tai pouts!)

"Ok, ok," Sora said laughing, "we'll call it a tie, since it was unfair."

"Hey guys, quite arguing and come here." Tar yelled. They walked over to where the rest of the group was crowded around a large computer. Izzy was pressing a few buttons, but nothing happened.

"Oh no. The main computer's been totaled, now we can't use the lifts." Izzy exclaimed.

"Told you." Mimi sighed.

"Wait. Are you saying the whole system is lost, or that the power is completely gone?" Kari asked.

"There's no way to really tell, since the power is completely lost, but if I could get enough power I could see what the damage is." he replied.

"Then use your power." Sora urged. Izzy glanced at her.

"How am I supposed to use my power, when I don't know how." he asked, exasperated.

"None of us knew how to use our powers until we tried them." Tai continued.

"Really, all you've got to do, is trust in your capibility and imagine what you want to happen." Tar said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. He hesitiated, then, slowly, turned to one of the lightning rods.

"Ok, but you guys had better stand back, I don't want it to backfire." he warned them. They nodded, and Kari placed her hands together, as if she were about to say a prayer, then opened them, revealing a small sphere of pink magic. As her hands grew more and more apart, the sphere became larger, and soon the sphere had engulfed them. Izzy nodded, satisfied, then took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, concentrating on what needed to be done. He imagined lighting bolts striking the sky, that same power flowing through his veins, and before he knew what was happening he opened his eyes and foud a purple aura glowing around him. He focused all his attention onto the lightning rod, and bright yellow sparks sizzled from his fingertips, and lighting came surging out of his palms, striking the lightning rod with a full force blow. The computer next to him suddenly sprang to life, lights flashing and sounds echoing from it's metallic base. "It worked." he whispered in awe. "It worked." he cried triumphantly turning to his friends, who were cheering.

"We knew you could do it Izzy." Matt said smiling as he gave him a slap on the back.

"You are now an official Sage." Tar congradulated.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's start this thing up and get to Electric Summit." Tai cried enthusiastically. And as Izzy began typing blinking buttons and turning multi-colored switches, the rest of the group pilled into the lift. Izzy jumped in and moments later the lift lurched forward and began moving slowly up the mountain.

"Well, at least it's better than climbing." Sora said optomistically.

"Yea, now I can rest my sore hands." Mimi said, looking at the blisters forming on her hands. Everyone was enjoying the rest from climbing; Matt shut his eyes, falling asleep under the gentle rocking of the lift. Mimi sat comfortably enjoying the cool wind whipping through her hair. Kari gazed a the sky, making sure not to look down at the ground. Tar was doing just the opposite, gazing at the ground as it passed by slowly. Izzy was busily typing on his labtop, probably recording how he used his lightning technique to start the lightning rod for future reference. Sora leaned against the back of the lift her eyes wandering towards the ocean; their destination, she wondered what other trials they would come across at Water Village. Tai leaned out of the lift slightly, his hair blowing wildly in the great wind, suddenly a dark feeling of dread filled him.

_You can't get away that easily, you may have disrupted my attempts to catch you, but I am not fooled so easily. Your power will be mine, wheather you give it to me willingly or not. _

His eyes grew wide at the familiar hissing voice, he thought it had forgotten him, but it appears he was wrong. He shivered, dread still pouring in him like a waterfall of evil.

"Tai?" Sora whispered into his ear. He jumped slightly at hearing her voice. "Did you hear those voices again?" she asked in a low tone so the rest of the group couldn't hear her.

"Yea, but how did you-" he started with a perplexed look on his face.

"I felt, a sort of...tremor. Like an earthquake, but when no one else seemed to feel anything except you, I thought it might be those voices again." Sora replied.

"This quest just keeps getting weirder and weirder." Tai said looking back toward the area he was looking at when the voice spoke to him, he realized that it was the Dark Continent. Suddenly Kari's sharp ears picked up a small noise, like the sound of something being stretched beyond it's limits. That's when she drove her attention to where the noise was coming from, and to her horror she realized the cable supporting their lift was breaking.

"GUYS!" she yelled, pointing to the wires about to be broken. All heads turned to where she was pointing.

"Great." Tar said sarcastically. They all braced themselves for it to give and send them falling to their deaths, but Mimi quickly focused on some strong looking vines growing up the mountain, and with a bright green aura forming around her hands, beckoned the vines to grow further up the mountain and hook onto the two seperating cables. She clenched her fists, realizing this was much heavier than she thought it would be.

"Ah...I don't know how long I can hold it." she grunted.

"Oh no, looks like we've got bigger problems." Sora said glancing up at the sky and seeing three dark figures flying towards them at an alarming rate. Kari squinted her eyes and gasped.

"It's LadyDevimon, Puppetmon, and Machienedramon!"

"Meems, keep hold of the cables, Izzy, think you can fix them?" Tai asked.

"Yea, but it might take a little while." he replied.

"Ok, Sor, think you can move the lift up the cable?" he asked.

"Sure." she said sounding more confident than she felt.

"When Izzy finishes repairing the cable, you've got to move it to Electric Summit. Tar, can you cloak us in shadows so we'll have some time?" Tai ordered.

"I don't know, I've never cloaked something so big." she said biting her lip nervously.

"Come on Tar you can do it." Izzy encouraged. She glanced from her brother to Izzy and slowly nodded.

"If we're spotted by the Dark Masters the rest of us will hold them off." Matt agreed. Everyone nodded and went to their assigned stations. Izzy climbed to the top of the lift and examined the damage of the cable.

"Guys, the cable didn't break it was cut." he shouted over the winds.

"No doubt we walked into a trap," Sora said. Izzy quickly began connecting various wires together, while Sora stood at the back of the lift, ready to use all her power to get the lift to the top. Tar began to focus her energy, she cupped her hands and a small black sphere formed in her hands. She spread her hands apart and the sphere spread with them, soon it engulfed the lift in shadows, camoflauging the lift. Tar gritted her teeth.

"You better hurry Izzy, this is really draining my power." she cried. Mimi was still holding the cables together with all her strength, but she found herself weakening. Matt noticed this and rushed to her side, a ligt blue aura formed around him, and he shot two small beams of ice around Mimi's vines, to keep them holding on.

LadyDevimon and her commrads, or in her opinion, blundering oafs, were flying towards Electric Summit, eager to see if Myotismon's plan had worked. Days before he had ventured to Electric Summit, knowing the Sages would come there sooner or later, and he used some of his bats to place his plan into action. (A/n: sorry, not gonna tell u what that is yet , but it's bad) She scanned the area and thought she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and saw nothing, but she could certainly feel something. She felt the presence of power and good_. The Sages_. she realized without a doubt. She smirked, Myotismon's plan going perfectly. Now all they had to do was get them to the top and their Sage problems would be no more.

"Machinedramon, Puppetmon. Look there and tell me what you see." she instructed.

"What kind of stupid question is that? There's nothing there." Puppetmon cried out.

"No, there is something there, I can feel it in my circits," Machinedramon argued. "The Sages no doubt."

"Yes. And for Myotismon's plan to work, we need to get them to Electric Summit." LadyDevimon added.

"How should we do that?" Machinedramon asked.

"Easy, we make it look like we're fighting them, and Puppetmon will hit the lift hard enough to make it go all the way up to Electric Summit." she replied simply. With that last notion they all flew towards the Sages.

Tai suddenly felt that same dread he had felt not too long ago, he whiped his head towards where the Dark Masters were, and noticed they were closer to them than they had been.

"Izzy do you almost have the cable ready?" he asked whipping his head in Izzy's direction.

"Almost," he replied, not taking his eyes away from the wires. Tar was still holding her magic in place, but sweat was beggining to form on her brow and her hands were trembling. Mimi was having just as hard a time, but now that Matt was helping her they were down to only two people to defened the lift.

"Tar, stop the cloaking." Tai shouted to her.

"What! Why?" she asked, her arms still raised and magic still coming from them.

"I think they've sensed us." he replied, his vision beginning to blur from headaches that were erupting in his head.

"How do you know?" she asked skeptically.

"Because I can sense them too." he replied sternly. She hesitated, but slowly the cloaking began to stop. She collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Izzy was nearly finished with the cable, but still he worked as fast as possible. Mimi began swaying, and Matt's teeth were gritted. Kari stood ready with Tai, knowing they would have to be the ones to fend off the Dark Masters.

The three dark figures now floated above them.

"Well, isn't this a treat. 7 Sages trapped within a small box and nowhere to run." LadyDevimon said smirking. Auras formed around Kari and Tai.

"So these are the 7 brats you've been bent on revenge for." Machinedramon said with humor in his voice (if that's possible for a cyborg type digimon) "Seems pretty pathetic LadyDevimon." Anger flashed in her eyes as she remembered her quest for revenge on two specific Sages, but remained calm knowing that they would all be dead in a matter of minutes.

"Don't be fooled so easily, they may be children byt they possess the powers of the elements." she replied. Kari was sick of their useless chatter, so she shot a bright pink laser out of her palm and watched as it soared through the air and hit Puppetmon. He doubled back and growled.

"Ohhh...you'll pay for that." he said angrily. While LadyDevimon and Machinedramon were ditracted Tai took this as his oppertunity abd shot two medium sized fire balls at them. LadyDevimon turned towards the two smirking Sages, and felt white-hot anger flood through her. She was tempted to kill them on the spot, but she wanted to see them begging to die after they reached Electric Summit.

"We'll see who's laughing when I get through with you." Puppetmon shouted, bringing his giant wooden hammer back. He aimed it for the Sage of Wind, but Tai grabbed her by the waist and quickly moved her out of harms way as his hammer collided with the back of the lift, and the Sages began soaring towards Electric Summit at lighting speed. Matt and Mimi's connection with the vines had broken, causing them to crash to the ground when Puppetmon had crashed his hammer into the lift. Izzy was nearly knocked off, but he narrowly landed in the lift, hanging onto the side with all his might. Kari had been knocked off her feet by the sudden jerk of the lift. When they reached the top in a matter of seconds, the lift stopped so suddenly that everyone was forced to the back of the lift.

"Whoa." Izzy said

"What a ride." Matt agreed.

"Tar get your foot out of my face." Sora said muffled. That's when both Tai and Sora realized that his hand was still around her waist, they blushed and stood up with everyone else. Izzy was gazing at his home with confusion. The roofs of the houses were metallic and high skyscrapers and factories dotted the the city. Stnds with food were stantioned on the corners, but no one was selling them. It was deserted.

"There's no one here." Mimi said as she looked aorund.

"It looks like everyone left just a few days ago." Kari said, juding the condidtion of the city.

"This doesn't make sense. Why would everyone just leave? The city's in perfect condition." Izzy wondered aloud.

"Well, you guys stay here, you all look like you need a rest. Me Tai and Sora will look around and see if we can find anything." Kari said. Tai and Sora agreed and they entered the city.

For a while they saw nothing unusual; a few scattered flyers, all the houses looked normal, even shops still looked like they open. But as they reached the edge of the city they began seeing bright red Xs all over the doors.

"What could they mean?" Sora asked.

"Who knows." Tai said as he touched to door with his hand.

"Maybe we should open one." Kari said glancing at them both. They nodded and walked towards the door, all three opened it at the same time, and three bats flew from within it. One flew over and bit Kari on her arm, while another tried to bite Sora on her leg, but she was able to blast the creature away using a gust of wind, and the last one scratched Tai across his cheek before he burnt one of the wings making it fly away awkwardly. Blood dripped from Kari's wound and she immediatly slapped her hand over the two large holes, while Sora collapsed to the ground by her side. Tai placed a hand over his cheek, it was deep, but Kari needed to get out of here fast.

"Kari you ok?" he asked his sister.

"Yea, no problem." she said wincing.

"That looks pretty bad." Sora disagreed. Tai twore a piece of his sleeve from his shirt and folded it around her arm as she bit her lip to try to ease the pain. They rushed out of the city, and back to the group.

As soon as they reahced the others, Kari collasped. "What happened?" Tar asked worridly as she rushed ot her fallen sister.

"I think I know what those markings on the door meant." Tai told Sora. "Plague." Gasps were heard among the group.

"Kari's been infected by a plague!" Mimi cried out in astonishment.

"I think everyone who lived here has." Sora replied.

"It's being spread by bats." Tai said as he knelt next to his sister

"Bats?" Izzy questioned. "There aren't any bats here. They're all in a cave at the base of the mountain."

"Well apparently not any more." Matt argued as he looked at Kari's bite marks.

"We've got to get help." Tar cried.

"We better get to Water Village, it's the closest place from here. And isn't the GL and his sons doctors?" Sora said.

"Yea, but how do we get down from here? If we climb that's take days, and the lift isn't much help now that the power's gone." Izzy added. They thought about this for a moment.

"Hmm...isn't Mt. Infinity a volcano?" Tai asked.

"Yea, it hasn't erupted in the last 20 years, but it is." Izzy replied. A grin broke out across his face.

"Then I think I have an idea. It's risky, but it's the fastest way I can think of." Tai said. Everyone exchanged glances, wondering what Tai was thinking.

In a few moments 6 large plates from the rooftops had been taken down. Tai suggested that they should 'lava ski'. Of course there was some arguments, but it seemed like the fastest way down.Kari had woken up, but she couldn't stand very well, so she and Tar were sharing their metal plates. True, none of them had skated on lava before, but it would be similar to skateboarding or surfing, as Izzy had concluded. Mimi rode up front by Tai, so she could stop the flow of lava by creating a creavice at the base of the mountain.

"Ok, everybody ready? Once I get the lava flowing I can't really stop it until I get to the bottom." Tai said to his friends. Everyone nodded, not sure if this was a good idea or not. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the lava flowing below them, when he opened them they were ablaze and a shower of sparks flew from where they stood at the top of the mountain. Smoke soon began billowing through the cracks that were forming as the pressure was being unleashed.

"BOOM!" half the top of the mountain had been blown off, and lava began seeping out of it. The Sages decided this was their cue and slid down the side of the mountain. Lava soon sweeped beneath the metal and headed towards the ground. They glided across the lava, swerving as they did. Kari was still hanging on to consciousness, but her grip on Tar was weakening, and her eyelids were starting to close.

"Kar, stay with me ok." Tar said to keep her awake. Kari groaned but kept her eyes open. Tai and Mimi were still up front. Tai's eyes were no longer glowing, but he was still controlling the flames in his mind, trying to keep them from covering too much of the mountain. Mimi, still weak from holding the wires in place, was wondering how she was going to create a crevice large enough for all the lava to sink into, but she calmed herself reminding herself that the others will be there to help her. Izzy was glancing at the sky every now and then to search for the Dark Masters. It was odd to him that they gave an extra boost to Electric Summit, although it looked like a mistake, but didn't give chase. It was as if they knew about the plague and hoped it would be their demise.

"We're almost to the ground." Tar shouted to the rest of her friends.

"Yea, what took us days is now taking minutes." Mimi agreed.

"Great idea Tai." Izzy cried. When Tai didn't respond he called again, "Tai?" Still no response. He was deep in thought. Although he was only scratched, he knew that those bats weren't carrying an ordinary virus, but an evil virus. He sensed it the moment the bats showed themselves. Somehow the bats had been infected by the virus and then placed in Electric Summit, the only question buzzing in his head was...why? Izzy's voice echoed in his head and jerked him back to reality.

"What?" he asked, slightly dazed.

"I said that this was a good idea." Izzy repeated for the millionth (A/N: not really , i like to exaggerate.) time.

"Oh, thanks," Tai said turning his head and giving a weak smile. "Come on Meems, we'd better get to the ground before the beach is destroyed." he called to Mimi.

"Got it." she replied. The two sped off, leaving the others in the dust. They approached the end of the lava river and Tai jumped off the metal slab. Mimi waited until the she reached solid ground before following suit. She rushed to the very edge of the forest and began concentrating on the ground, shifting it, and creating a great crevise. Tai rushed in front of her to slow the flow of lava. A bright green aura began glowing around Mimi, making her hair float in strands of green edged magic, and her eyes began glowing like glittering emeralds. She thrust her hands towards the ground and the earth began to tremble. A long crack began forming at the base of the mountain, then, with the light of her Elemental Crest glowing brighter than ever, she split the ground in two, creating a deep hole in the earth. The rest of the Sages jumped from their metal plates and ran over to where Mimi was swaying on her weak legs. Tai created a barrier so all the lava would fall into the crevice, then he stopped the volcanoe's erruption.

Tar gently lay Kari on the ground, her brow was shining with sweat and her eyes were shut tightly. The wound on her arm, although bandaged, was swelling, and blood still dripped from it. Her once calm face was tense and firm.

"She needs help." Matt whispered.

"We can't risk infecting Water Village, Matt and Izzy you guys bring the GL here. Tell him it's urgent." Tai ordered. Without second thoughts they ran towards the huts seen in the distance.

"What should I do Tai?" Tar asked.

"I need you to look after Kari." he replid. Tar nodded gravely.

"What about Mimi?" Sora asked.

He glanced at Mimi who had fallen asleep just moments ago."Just let her sleep, she's used up a lot of her magic."

Suddenly large bubbles were coming from the water's surface. They travelled from farther out at sea to the shore. The reamaining Sages watched as a long black figure began to show under the rippling surface. Suddenly a huge serpant head rose out of the water.

"MetalSeadramon!" they gasped.

"Sages. So you are the cause of all our troubles." he hissed.

"About time you showed up Metal head." another dark voice yelled. They turned their heads in the opposite direction and saw LadyDevimon and Piedmon.

"Piedmon. You dare to enter my territory." MetalS. challenged.

"Now is not the time you two." LadyDevimon interrupted. With that she drew two small metal balls from behind her back. "First let's finish these...children." She threw one of the metal balls at Tar. As it flew through the air, four long, curved metal pipes unfolded from within the weapon. It found it's mark and clasped around Tar's body, pinning her arms to her sides. She was thrown backwards from the impact and landed near the water edge. Sora rushed over to her while Tai stayed with Kari, but by now LadyDevimon had taken two smaller metal balls from behind her back. She threw them at Sora, and by the time she turned around one had clasped around each of her arms, cementing him to the ground.

"SORA, TAR!" Tai cried in shock, but MetalSeadramon thrashed his tail behind her and wrapped it around Kari, who was still unconscious. Piedmon who had been watching with amusement swooped down and forced Tai's hands behind his back and clapsed his hand over his mouth.

"Still wondering about those voices?" he asked mockingly. Tai narrowed his eyes. "I know who it is, boy, and I'll tell you that she's right. I know your future, and my mistress has many plans. If one fails there's always another in it's place." he chuckled. He placed two fingers on the back of his neck and a black stream of magic entered his mind, he screamed beneath the hand and Piedmon released him to fall to the ground.

Shouts were heard coming from Water Village, and seconds later Matt, Izzy, and three new figures showed up.

"Guys?" Joe cried in astonishment.

"RIVER OF POWER!" MetalS. shouted, sending Matt and Izzy to the wet sand. Joe remained standing a ways away from where Matt and Izzy collapsed.

"Joe! Save Kari!" Sora shouted. He looked up and saw that Kari was dangling helplessly in the clutches of MetalS. He looked up and rushed to the water, ignoring the calls made by his family to stop. He dove into the water, every thought in his mind telling him to stop and hide under a table or something, but he felt responsible for helping his friends while they were in danger. Suddenly an Elemental Crest was glowing around Tar's neck. She gasped as it flew towards the ocean and right to Joe. A funnel of bright blue water shot up from the floor, spinning like a cyclone around Joe. When the water evaporated he was wearing an ocean blue shirt with a white shirt beneath it, his eyes, which were still behind his round glasses, now were dark blue with aqua dots within them, and jean shorts.

"What!" MetalS. exclaimed, dropping Kari as he did. LadyDevimon and Piedmon gasped.

"Another one!" she cried in anger. Joe gasped as he gazed at his hands in awe, they glowing an ocean blue, he felt power surging through his veins, and he felt a strong connection with the water surrounding him. Suddenly a huge wave formed behind him and engulfed MetalS. and the two digimon on the sand. When the wave returned back to the ocean, all three were gone, but the other Sages still remained.

"Whoa." Sora said, her wet hair clinging to her face.

"That was awesome." Tar exclaimed, laughing. Mr. Kido rushed over to the unconscious Sages, checking each one to make sure they were alive.

"Quickly we must get them inside." he said as Jim began pulling at the bonds that were holding them to the ground. Mimi finally awoke, coughing and complaining about what sea water does to her hair, but when realization came upon her she ran over to where four of her friends lay unconscious. And they quickly brought them inside.

When Tai opened his eyes he saw he was no longer on the sandy beach, but in a comfortable study, books covered the tall walls (A/N: lol, that rhymed!). He glanced around and saw Sora kneeling beside the couch he was laying on. He saw Matt, Izzy, and Tar sitting on some plush chairs, Kari lay, still unconscious, on a couch opposite of him. He also saw another person sitting on a large red velvet chair besides two other people. Joe! He sat up slightly, causing heads to turn.

"Tai, good you're ok." Sora said as she met his eyes.

"Yea. What happened?" he asked.

"Joe's the new Sage Tai." Izzy said excitedly.

"Really." he said smiling.

"Yea, although I don't know why." Joe replied.

"What about Kari?" he asked, remembering his little sister.

"Mr. Kido gave her a cure, powered thorn and golden flower." Tar replied.

"She'll be ok." Jim added.

"So it's really true then." Mr. Kido irrupted. All heads turned in his direction, he was facing one of the book shelves, his face hidden by his arm. "Then Electric Summit has been plagued and deceased by a disease found in the regions of the Dark Continent. And all the other coastal cities have been destroyed." he said sadly. "I was hoping that they were just rumors, I had a feeling they weren't but-"

"Joe, Jim, Mr. Kido." Tar said surprised. "What do you mean by 'true'"

"I think you owe us some answers." Matt agreed. Joe sighed

"We got a distress call from the coastal cities, glad to see _you guys_ made it out at least." Joe added with a small smile, "so we sent all our armies to help with what we could. But one of the Dark Masters; Myotismon I think it was, showed up about three days ago and sent hundreds of bats to plague Electric Summit. Myself and Jim were the only doctors left, since most of our medical doctors left with the armies, but we couldn't make the journey to Electric Summit due to the power loss in the cable cars."

"S"o you let all those people die." Izzy said, clenching his fists.

"There was no other way to get up there. The rocks had been slick, as if soapy water had been placed on it, so we couldn't climb." Jim said sorrowful.

"We just wish we knew why. Why those demons had plagued innocent people." Joe added.

"I believe I know why." Mr. Kido replied, raising his head slightly. "I've been hearing of a group of children with seemingly magical powers travelling through Dark Master targeted sites. Perhaps they knew you would go there eventually."

Those words cut through Tai like a knife. What Piedmon had said to him started to come back to him. "_My mistress has many plans. If one fails there's another to take it's place. _Shivers ran up his spine at what that could mean. Out of nowhere a thunder of explosions and shower of sparks began cascading down on the roof.

"Children, I'm sorry to cut your time short, but darkness has returned. You must leave at once." Mr. Kido said motioning them out the back door.

"But dad, Jim, can't you come with us?" Joe asked.

"We can't. I'm sure the rest of you have heard this many times, but we'd only get in your way. You must leave now." he said rushing them out the door. "Good luck, my son." he said before closing it. They rushed into the forest behind the beach and looked at the sky, and sure enough, LadyDevimon and Piedmon were flying back towards the village, and coming from the sea, Seadramon was seen swimming towards the shore.

"We'd better go." Tai said as they began retreating into the forests.

"We only have one more destination on the map." Kari said confused.

"What? But there are 10 Sages, not 9." Izzy said as he looked at the map.

"Light Lagoon? I've never heard of that place." Sora said as she too, caught a glimpse of the map.

"It seems the closer we get to answers, the more questions arise." Matt said as they started walking.

"Let's hope we get some of them answered in Light Lagoon though." Tar added.

Hey eveyone! sry it took me sooooo long to update, but i've been swamped with HW and stuff. So i'll update the next chapt. as soon as i can! Later ya'll! R&R!

_**YamiTai**: hmmm...maybe smirks you could! wow! i'm impressed! thaz a language my aunt taught me, she and my grandma made it up , so that's kool u could decipher it hope u liked this chapt! later!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha**: sup my loyal fan , yay! i have a loyal fan! (or 2, lol) glad u liked the review to...your review, dude that souds weird, lol. And hmmmm...killing a teacher, hmmm...maybe...if u get caught, lol. thanx 4 ur review! u ROCK! laterz!_

_**star: **hiya! no prob that u didn't review the last chat, but u reviewed it on this last one soooo...it's like u did , and glad u liked the twist, i luv twists cuz they turn everything around, lol. Thanx 4 the review, awww...u're so nice! Laterz!_

_**mysticalruby: **lol, glad u like it so much! i'll update asap, cuz after all, it's the last of the DDs! yay! C-ya!_

_**digicodelyoko**: kewl screen name! me likey code lyoko too! thanx 4 the awesome review! U ROCK! Later dude!_

_**Rayana Wolfer**: lol, dang iz ok, no prob, lol. Glad u liked this and the other chapt . and i'm a Koumi fan too. YAY! but my sister is a mimato fan, and for my other story she asked me to make it mimato, so i said ok, and since this is their past lives, i had to have some of the same stuff . thanx for the review loyal fan! i know i've told u this A LOT, but...U ROCK! yay! laterz!_

_**HyperAnimeGirl**: i luv ur screen name thing! YAY! glad u like the story thnx sooo much 4 the review! i'll update asap! Peace out!_


	7. The Other Half of Light

me: hey whaz up everyone . SRY! seriously, my pc has been out of it and i haven't been able to ubdate, whaaaaa... but no use cryin over spilled milk. ok as u all probably figured; TK's in this one! YAY! lol. I wanted to thank all u peoplez who have been reviewing! AWESOMENSS! (i luv sayin that. lol) kay, here we go!

! How can there be only nine places in the map?" Kari asked as they told her what had happened since fell asleep.

"We don't know." Izzy replied, looking over it for the thousanth time.

"At least we know where we're going now." Mimi added, trying to keep the atmosphere cheery,

"The only thing I'm curious about is where is Light Lagoon?" Matt asked. "The map says it's not too far from Earth Kingdom, so why didn't we see it?"

"I've heard rumors about that place." Tar said. "It's said that because it was so beautiful and full of happiness the evil god of power destroyed it. I haven't met anyone from Light Lagoon before."

"Well this map does look like it was made a long time ago. Maybe even before it was destroyed, and that's why it's on the map." Joe concluded.

"Then what about the Sage of Light? They have to be a direct bloodline from his/her ancestors that lived in Light Lagoon. That's why these places have been so specific." Sora said.

"Well let's go to where Light Lagoon is on the map, maybe there's a village or something nearby." Tai suggested.

! Luckily the Light Lagoon ruins weren't too far a journey. It would take them about a day and a half to reach, but that was nothing compared to the distances they had to walk before.

After walking all day they decided to rest and make camp. Tar was studying the map closely. Something didn't quite fit together about Light Lagoon. _Surely mom and dad would have corrected it after Light Lagoon was destroyed.So why is it still here?_ she asked this question over and over in her mind. Then a thought hit her; what if it wasn't destroyed. Maybe it was just made to look that way. But again that only made more questions appear, such as why?

"Tar, you ok?" Izzy asked. She was jolted from her thoughts.

"Ummm...yea, I'm fine." she replied falsely.

"You've thought of something. About Light Lagoon, haven't you." he said.

"What makes you think that." she replied innocently.

"I haven't seen anyone stare at a piece of paper for 2 hours. Well, unless Joe got 120 on a school test." he said chuckling. Tar laughed a little too.

"Well, it's just that...why wouldn't my parents fix the map after Light Lagoon was desroyed?"

"So you think it wasn't destroyed, correct." he said looking at the map himself.

"Right. But then what could've happened to it?" she continued.

"I started wondering the same thing. After Kari told me your parents had the map and knew where it was." Izzy stated. "You'd think they would have done something to indicate that the ninth Sage is somewhere else."

"Exactly!" Tar exclaimed. She finally felt that someone understood what she was thinking. She turned her gaze from the map and Izzy to look at the rest of her friends. Joe's hair was sticking to his head since he had been trying to conjure up a stream of water, but they had all showered over him, soaking him. Matt and Mimi were watching Tai and Sora kick a fallen fruit around like a soccer ball. Kari had fallen asleep since she wasn't completely well yet. Everything seemed pretty normal, considering they were all magical Sages who had to save the world from the Dark Masters.

Day soon turned into dusk, and the sky had become a bright red. The Sages sat around a bright, cackling fire as the sun dropped behind the horizon. Silence was the only thing heard for miles, and it was an eerie feeling. The world seemed to hush after the deaths of the largest cities.

Reluctantly they all turned in, Joe, who still wanted to be able to master his powers took first watch followed by Sora and Tai.

As Tai began to fall asleep, Piedmon's voice started ringing in his ears.

"_My Mistress has many plans, if one fails another takes it's place.'" _

_"I have seen your future, and she's right boy." _

!_(A/N: ok, in case you haven't figured it out, this is dream sequence) _

_The world was spinning wildly, everything was a blur of grey and black. Tai looked around when the dizziness ceased. The room reaked of evil from it's black silken curtains to the large round mirror that stood across from the elegant black bed. _

_He took a cautious step forward and the moment he did the door burst open with a great force. _

_A girl completely cloaked in darkness except for two bright red eyes stepped into the room. The moment she did a wave of pain crashed into Tai's skull, causing his vision to go blury. She stared directly into his eyes, which were full of question. _

_"So this is the great fire Sage. We meet at last." she said, her red eyes glistening. "I've been most anxious to meet you since the first time I contacted you." _

_"Who are you. And why do you keep entering my mind?" he demanded, clutching his head with his hand. _

_She chuckled as though the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. "I am a ruler of darkness who wishes to expand her rule. I enjoy torture and suffering like a hobby, especially to those goody-goodies like you and your ignorant friends. But in order to accomplish my goal of conquring Digitania I need you Sages out of the way. And what better way than to make you all join me or simply obliterate just one of you." Pleasure of the confusion, anger, and pain spreading across Tai's face, she walked forward, causing the pain Tai was experience to double with each step. _

_"Of course you already knew that the forces of darkness would be after you more than the other Sages. After all your filthy bastard of a mother told you before we could keep her mouth shut permanently." she smirked as flames began coursing through his eyes, but the pain was so intense that he was kneeling on the floor, his breathing was in fast gasps. _

_"Shut up you-" _

_"Na ah ah." she interrupted, for some reason Tai found that he couldn't speak. He wasn't at a loss for words, but still he couldn't even move now. "I have a power too. I am able to manipulate anyone I wish into doing what I want. That's why Piedmon turned into such a great subject, although he turned to me by free-will, sick and tired of that fool Myotismon. Although you are a particurlary difficult person to gain control over." she said eyeing him suspiciously. _

_"But what can't be done is just an obstacle that I will one day overcome. We will meet again boy." she said smirking. She placed a hand on his forehead and the pain was so unbearable that a few short screams escaped his mouth._

Tai bolted upright. Sweat streaming down his face and his heart beating madly. His breathing was in short gasps, his eyes were wide, and his head was jeering with an intense tormenting throbbing. He took several deep breaths, trying to calm his frantic heart.

The nightmare was far too real to be a simple dream. Questions began swimming through his head, the most obvious was how was he able to see her? She could get in his head, but how did she get in his dreams?

"Tai. You okay bro?" Tar, who had been awoken by by gasping, was looking at his fear-struck face with concern.

"Yea," he replied a little too quickly, "Just a bad dream or something." She eyed him skeptically.

"Liar," she muttered so silently Tai almost didn't catch it.

"Am not," he whispered back.

"Are too," she replied smirking.

Joe suddenly came storming towards them. "Guys! Guys!" he cried, flailing his arms. He stopped in front of them and put his hands on his knees, panting. "Guys...you..

.. gotta...see this."

"What Joe?" Tar asked. He motioned for them to follw him as he rushed off. Tar and Tai glanced at each other, but persued him anyway.

When they caught up to him he was staring into a lake, where a weird white glow was radiating from the depths.

"Whoa." Tar muttered, as though her tongue was tied into a knot and that was all she could manage to say.

"What do you think it is?" Joe asked.

"I don't know." Tai admitted. He knelt beside the water and placed a hand in the cool water. "But something down there is causing all this light."

"Joe, you're the water Sage." Tar said "Do some magic." Joe looked stumped, but sat beside Tai and the familiar blue aura formed around his hand. He moved it over the water's surface, but the water barely rippled.

"Well?" Tai said after waiting a few moments

"Nothing's happening." Joe exclaimed in shock. "It's like there's a magic barrier keeping me from using my powers."

Suddenly a hand shot up from the crystal water, grasping Joe's arm. Joe, who had screamed, was being pulled into the water by the force of the hand's owner, who was still concealed by the glow.

"Joe!" Tar and Tai cried in unsion when he toppled into the water. It all happened so fast that neither of them could've helped them, but as fast as the first had shown up, two more hands tore out of the once still water. One grabbed Tai's wrist and the other grabbed Tar's ankle. They were pulled into the water as fast as Joe was, and after the waves settled it appeared that nothing strange had taken place just moments before.

"Where are they." Sora grunted angrily.

The sun was shining above their heads and Tar, Tai, and Joe were no where to be found. Sora had woken when the first rays of light hit her face, realizing that she had never taken her turn for watch. She went to check if Joe had fallen asleep, but he wasn't there, and when she walked back to see if he had gone to sleep with the rest of them she noticed Tai and Tar were missing too.

She woke Matt, but he looked as dumbstruck as she did. "I haven't heard from any of them since last night." he said honestly.

Now they were all searching for any trace of them, but had no luck so far.

"They couldn't have just vanished into thin air." Kari stated.

"That's what worries me." Sora said as she thought of what could have happened right under their noses.

"Sora relax. You know if they were taken or something they would've put up a fight, but there's no evidence that shows there was a struggle. I'm guessing they went somewhere and got lost." Izzy soothed.

"Maybe." Sora replied._ Or maybe they heard something in the forest and when they went to check it out they got themselves killed_. She thought, panic started clouding her better judgement. That wasn't really what she was thinking, she was afraid about the voice Tai's been hearing. He'd been hearing it more frequently. _What if that witch did something._ She raged. _I swear I'll kill her if she did something to them_.

"Sora!" Mimi yelled from behind a group of trees. "Sora! Come here! I think I found something!" Sora felt her heart leap as she ran over to where Mimi was leering over a small lake.

"What's up Mimi?" she asked as she sat next to her. Mimi pointed at some footprints and two pairs of drag marks.

"Do you think-?" Mimi started. Sora stared at the lake, and for a second she saw Joe, Tai and Tar standing beside this lake, which was glowing. She shook her head to clear the vision. "Hello, Earth to Sora!" Mimi was waving a hand in front of her face.

Sora snapped out of her trance, "Huh? wha-?"

"Honestly Sora, if you're not going to listen to me could you at least make it seem like you are." she said in a very annoyed tone.

"Sorry Mimi," she said apologetically, "I guess I just spaced out."

"It's okay." Mimi reassured, her normal bubbly personality returning, "I do that when Izzy starts talking in his computer language." She giggled.

Sora stared into the mirror-like surface and her reflection stared back. For a second she could've sworn her reflection was motioning her to move closer to the water's edge."Hey Mimi. Wasn't Light Lagoon near a lake?" Sora asked.

Mimi thought about it for a second "Maybe we should ask Izzy."

When they returned to the campsite they found Matt, Kari and Izzy returning from searching the perimeter.

"Nothing." Matt said exhasperated, "We've looked all over the area. They've got to be farther in the forest."

"They wouldn't have gone too far without telling us. Joe's too responsible for that, and Tai and Tar...well...Joe's too responsible." Kari argued.

"I'll check my computer for any magical activity. If any of them used their powers it should show up if I do a scan around here." Izzy said pulling out his laptop.

"I don't think you'll need to scan the whole area Izzy," Sora said coming up next to him with Mimi on her tail. "I think we found where they went."

Mimi and Sora led the remaining Sages to the strange lake, and almost instantly an annoying beeping noise started echoing from Izzy's laptop. He typed a few buttons on the keyboard. "There's definately a lot of magic around here."

The beeping steadily increased in pitch until they got to the lake where it was loudest.

"This lake is full of magic." Kari said kneeling beside it.

"I think the magic is greatest at night." Sora concluded.

"What makes you say that?" Mimi asked.

"I saw it in a kind of vision earlier." Sora replied. "It was at night, and a strange white glow was coming from this lake, and all three of them were around it. And that's all I saw."

"Then maybe we should come back tonight." Matt said.

They all agreed and headed back to the campsite.

! The await for nightfall was probably the most anxious they had ever been. They were all very worried about their friends since they hadn't heard from them in nearly 24 hours.

When the sun finally dipped away from sight they made their way back to the lake, but nothing had changed.

"It's the same." Kari said gloomily.

"But that's impossible. Everything fits; the footprints, Sora's vision, the traces of magic." Matt said thunderstruck.

"Perhaps it has to have certain circumstances, like the position of the moon or a time of night." Izzy said logically.

"In that case maybe we should sleep here." Mimi added. While the talking continued. Kari lay on her stomache, this lake didn't seem evil at all, it felt tranquil and full of light. _So why did Tar, Tai, and Joe disappear here?_ Her reflection suddenly morphed into a boy that shockingly reasembled Matt, but it shimmered and returned to normal in an instant.

"Who was that?" she asked herself.

"Who was who?" Mimi asked next to her.

"Didn't you see that boy?" Kari asked, feeling as though she were going crazy.

"What boy?" Mimi asked, very confused.

"Never mind." Kari sighed, "I guess I'm just tired." Mimi nodded.

They decided to sleep near the lake, although it was a restless attempt. It was completely dark. Not even a moon was present, and being surrounded by thick forest in the dead of night wasn't very comforting.

It was around midnight, the true witching hour, when Sora was awoken by a light shining through her eyelids.

"It can't be morning yet." she said as she groggily opened her eyes. As she sat up she gasped, for the lake that was before her was glowing eerily like the full moon. She crawled cautiously toward it and saw that the glow was comming from the bottom of the lake. "Guys!" she yelled, and at the sound of her voice they woke up.

"What's up Sora?" Matt asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Prodigious, the light appears to be producing from something at the bottom of the lake." Izzy said in awe. "Something with very high levels of magic."

"Whatever's down there must be where they went." Kari said as she leered over the surface.

"Well, there's only one way to find out." Sora admitted. "And that's to go down there." She glanced around at everyone else, all expecting her to go first. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, then without a second thought she dove head-first into the still surface. She opened her eyes but saw nothing more than a blinding white light. Four simultanious splashes encouraged her to swim further through the uncharted territory.

She swam until she felt like her lungs would burst, but at that moment her hands pressed against a solid surface. The surface was like a hard, clear bubble that surrounded a beautiful city with tall gleaming towers and mirror-like houses. All gold and white colored. People dotted the pearly white ground below and instantly Sora assumed that this was the lost city Light Lagoon.

She suddenly remembered the need to breath and shot up toward the surface, gasping. Mimi and Kari's heads soon joined her above the water's surface with Matt and Izzy returning shortly after.

"You all saw that too, right?" Kari asked. Everyone nodded in reply.

"Light Lagoon. It never was destroyed. Tar was right." Izzy said, still amazed at what he had seen at the bottom of the lake.

"But why hasn't anyone noticed it? You'd think a glowing lake would attract people from Earth Kingdom." Mimi wondered aloud.

"Maybe it has. But because they want it to remain secret they have taken any travellers who have wittnessed the light captive." Sora replied.

"Do you think that's what happened to Joe, Tai and Tar?" Kari asked.

"It makes sense. But why haven't we been-" just as Izzy was asking the very question buzzing in their minds, he was plunged back into the water, soon followed, one by one, by the remaining Sages.

! Sora found herself awoken by a bright light forced down on her face. She sat upright, eyes wide as events from that evening became freshly engraved in her mind.

As she gazed around she knew at once that she was in the sparkling eutopia below the lake. Everything was made of pure gold and silver; buildings, houses, even clothing had trimmings of them.

_It must be dawn_. she realized. Light shown through the clear water and reflected majestically against the beautiful metals.

She tried to stand up, to explore the room she found herself in, but her legs felt like they had been replaced with blocks of ice. No feeling whatsoever, and even the slightest movement was a huge effort. Frustrated with her prediciment she glanced around the room, but there was nothing out of the ordinary, at least not for a lost city that supposidly was blown up hundreds of years earlier.

The room, much like everything else in the city, was gold and glimmering, with white curtains covering two large windows. _Maybe Light Lagoon has always been down here. And because of the rumors of the powers of evil wanting it to be destroyed, they created a fake city and made it look like it was abolished_. she thought cleverly.

At that moment a door opened and a boy no older than Kari walked in. Short blonde hair rested on top of his head, and dark blue pools made up his eyes. He looked so familiar that Sora wanted to slap herself because she couldn't remember his name, which seemed to be on the tip of her tongue.

He calmly walked into the room, and kneeled next to her. "You're Sora arn't you?" he asked, a small smile spreading across his face.

She looked at him for a second, then it hit her. "Tk?" He nodded. "I knew I'd seen you somewhere before." she exclaimed.

"Yep." he said beaming. "My mom's GL here." Sora looked taken back at this.

"We'll talk with the others. I'm sure they're dying to know the story too." Sora's brain was experiencing a jump-start. Due to her excitement of being in a world thought to be nonexsistant, she had forgotten all about her friends.

"By any chance, have you seen Tai and Tar Kamiya and Joe Kido?" she asked, thinking how dumb this question must sound.

"Yea. Some of our patrollers spotted them at the surface of our lake, and they were suspicious so they were brought down here." Tk replied matter-of-factly. "Speaking of which, they're all really anxious to see you." Tk's familiar innocent smile spread across his face.

The icey binds holding her legs to the ground suddenly vanished.

"How?" she stampered

"Sorry Sora, we had to make sure you were you." he said sheepishly. He offered her a hand, "So the Dark Masters are back, huh."

"How did you know about that?" she asked as they began walking out of the room. "Tai told me all about it. But...I don't think the temporary GL believes you guys." he said, his feet shifting slightly.

"The temporary GL?" Sora asked bewildered, "but I thought you said your mom-"

"She is." he interrupted, "but after hearing what Tai, Tar and Joe had to say she went to the surface. She left her chief advisor in charge, and I don't trust him." his eyes narrowing at the last statement.

"We'll have to make him believe us then." Sora alighted.

They walked through the flourishing hallways, which had gleaming chandellers hanging above their heads and long luxurious carpets stretched further than the eye could see. It was the strangest, most beautiful place Sora had ever been in.

They walked up a few corridors and down a staircase before reaching the GL's room. It looked more like a grand ballroom with it's glossy gold floors and a huge diamond chandeller that glittered like a star.

In the center of the room three figures stood, glaring hotly at one another. A boy, who looked a few years older than them (think 16) had identical blonde hair to Tk and Matt's and a long blue robe on. His steely blue eyes met angry dark blue and firey red.

"You don't expect me to believe you...kids...are really the Sages of Legend do you." the elder teen asked.

"For the billionth time Yes!" Tar exclaimed.

"Please," he spat sarcastically, "do you think a few simple tricks of light are really going to fool me."

"I'll give you tricks of light." Tai said, eyes flashing. Tar grasped his shoulder.

"What's going on?" Tk demanded as he walked in, seeing enough.

"Takeru!" the advisor jumped slightly.

"Tk, make this fool believe us." Tar said eyeing the advisor dangerously. Tai and the advisor were still glaring at each other through the corner of their eye.

"Alex, what they say is true." Tk said sighing.

"Yes of course." Alex said rolling his eyes.

"Glad to see you're both ok." Sora said, quickly stopping another outburst.

"Sora!" Tar and Tai cried gleefully, as though their argument with Alex the Advisor had never occured.

"Oh Sora, this is Alex. He's the advisor I was telling you about." Tk introduced.

"A pleasure to meet you miss. A shame someone with your class spends time with such...well you know what I mean." He kissed the back of her hand. Sora noticed fury on both Tai and Tar's faces. Tar nudged Tai when she felt heat radiation forming around him.

"These two happen to be my best friends." Sora spat, causing the annoying glint in his eyes to vanish. "And what they say is true."

"Of course it is." he said smirking. He took a golden pocket watch from his pocket (A/N: hence the name pocket watch ) and glanced at it. "Must be off. Important matters to discuss. Takeru, Sora." He bustled out into the main hall, his blue robes swishing against his legs.

"I deffinently don't trust him." Tk said, narrowing his eyes.

"If he keeps up that attitude there's not going to be much left to not trust." Tai said venomously. Flames lingered in his eyes for amoment before they cooled.

"Need some disinfectants for that hand?" Tar asked making a face of pure disgust. Sora couldn't contain her laughter.

"I don't trust him either." Sora agreed. "Something about him seems oddly familiar, though, don't you think?" She turned her attention to Tai and Tar.

"Yea." they said in unsion. "We were thinking the same thing." Tai added.

"Tk, I think now's as good a time as any for you to tell us what you were talking about earlier." Tar said.

"Ok, now that Sora's up I can tell you why we're down here." Tk replied.

"But where are the others?" Sora asked curiously.

"Sleeping." Tai said chuckling. Sora gave him, Tk and Tar confused looks. Tk motioned for them to follow. After rounding a few corridors they reached a large dome shaped room. Tk took a small silver key from his pocket and unlocked the door. When Sora entered she saw her five friends sprawled across the floor, blankets pulled over their shoulders.

She turned back to Tk, who was standing in the doorway. "It's customary for anyone that enters Light Lagoon to have his or her memory erased. The only reason Tar and Tai are still conscious is because we used the memory charm on Joe first, and for some reason it didn't work on Tai. Tar talked fast enough to tell me what happened, but hadn't told anyone else, so when you, Mimi, Izzy, Kari and Matt appeared I had enough time to keep you from the memory charm." Tk explained.

"But, wouldn't that mean they won't remember anything?" she asked.

"Luckily we always keep a counter charm or you'd be right." Tk said sheepishly.

"That's why they're out of it." Tar added. "The counter charm is like a sleeping potion. One whif and you're out cold for 2 days."

"I still want to know why it didn't affect you Tai." Tk added. Tai felt a lurch in his stomache.

_Although you are particularly difficult to gain control over_

He still wasn't sure if he should worry his friends about the encounter with the owner of the voice.

"Umm..." he started, when suddenly Alex burst through a door at the far end of the hallway.

"Takeru!" he ran toward him. "The Dark Masters, they're outside! Above the barrier!" They gasped after hearing this news.

"Come on!" Tk yelled as they rushed outside. When they finally came to a hault outside the castle-like building they saw many people and digimon running for shelter panic-stricken. They turned their attention to the sky and a dark snake-like shadow swerving above the barrier.

"Metal Seadramon!" Sora realized.

"If he uses his River of Power attack on the barrier everything and everyone here will be gone." Tai exclaimed.

"Yea, but what can we do?" Tk asked. Tai began forming a plan as fast as he could. He glanced at the barrier above, then at Tar and Sora, then back at Metal Seadramon's shadow, which was growing larger by the second.

"Tar, can you turn into that shadow underwater?" he asked.

"I guess." she said, a perplexed look on her face.

"Can you turn someone else into a shadow with you?" he continued.

"I don't know, I've never tried. But I think I can." she replied.

"Then you and Sora need to get to the top without being caught." he turned to Sora, "Since Joe's out cold, Sor, you'll need to use your magic on the lake." They both nodded.

"What should we do?" Tk asked.

"Tk, you need to try and calm everyone here. Get them inside the GL's meeting place." he comanded. He nodded and rushed toward the center of the city.

"What are you going to do?" Sora asked him.

"I'll try and get the others awake." he said simply. "Good luck." Tar's eyes began glowing the familiar pure white, and in an instant they were gone, but two shadows remained; one with white eyes and the other with crimson. The shadows scaled up the barrier and slipped through it with ease.

Tai watched them go until they were out of sight, then he turned on his heels and ran to where the others slept. He reached the dome room, but when he opened the door he realized it was unlocked. Tk hadn't locked the door when they left. A twange of worry stabbed him as he opened the door.

It was just as he feared, the room was empty. "You won't find them in there." a sinister voice said behind him. He turned his head and Alex was standing behind him.

"What are you doing here." Tai said menacingly.

"Kidnapping you Sages of course." he replied smirking.

"I thought you didn't believe us." his eyes burning.

"Oh, that was all an act. You see, my name's not really Alex, and I'm not really an advisor." as he said this, a mist started forming around his feet and moving upward. The figure doubled in size and his hair grew longer, and his eye-teeth suddenly grew in length. Alex the advisor was no longer standing before him, but instead Myotismon himself was looming sinisterly in front of the door. "Now I'm only missing three." His eyes flickered. "GRISLEY WING!" Bats of every size flew at Tai until the entire corridor was black with the flapping of thousands of wings.

Tai backed into the dome room and shut the door with a loud BANG as bats flew at the door. He presssed all his weight against the door and grasped the doorknob, which began melting including the lock holding the two door together. It wasn't going to last long and Tai knew that, but maybe long enough to devise a way of escape. The room had no doors or windows, so this wasn't going to be easy. The bats must have gone, the sound of flapping was emmiting away, but Myotismon was there for sure. He leaned his head against the door, trying to hear what Myotismon was saying. But as he did a bright red streak of lightning pierced through the door centimeters from where Tai was.

"You can't stay locked in there forever boy. And once I've captured the other two, my power will have no limits." Myotismon sneered. But Tai wasn't listening

_Myotismon wouldn't of had enough time to capture them and get me. Whoever took the others wouldn't have gone outside this castle, or they'd attract attention. They're still here somewhere_. he thought. He rushed to the back wall. The walls were metal, so they could easily be manipulated. He thrust his arm forward and a circular opening was left in the wall. He ran through it and behind him he could hear the crashing sound as the door exploded. He lost his footing from the immense force and a pile of debree fell on top of him. He quickly hoisted himself up using one of his arms and continued running through the corridor that was revealed.

_I hope Sor and Tar are fairing better than I am. _he thought as the wall in front of him suddenly collapsed, blocking him from proceding.

But things were going just as difficult for Sora and Tar. MetalSeadramon had proved that he wasn't going to leave the water, so they were forced to baattle beneath the surface. Sora was able to form air bubbles that formed over their mouths and noses, but MetalSeadramon was faster and slicker in the water than they were.

"RIVER OF POWER!" he cried, sending an icey blast at them. Tar held her hands in front of her and the attack was instantly thrown back. MetalSeadramon, with ease, looped over it.

"You pathetic attempt for a hero. You two really expect to beat me in _my _element." he said smirking. Tar and Sora exchanged glances, both aware that this was going to be far more difficult than before.

Suddenly an idea clicked in Sora's head_. An underwater cyclone! Or a whirlpool_! Now all she had to do was tell Tar without MetalSeadramon overhearing. She eyed Tar and as whisps of silver energy began forming around her hands and the water beggan rocking more violently; Tar seemed to get the message and returned to her shadow form before she was sucked into the insane cycle of water. MetalSeadramon's tail was soon caught in the swirling mass of water and was spinning uncontrallably (A/N: and since he's SO big, you can imagine what kinda cyclone that is). Sora smirked as her crimson eyes stopped glowing. She swam towards the dome as Tar cast a swarm of shadows beneath MetalSeadramon and shoved him above the surface.

With a final yell of triumph Tar turned them both into shadow form and slipped back through Light Lagoon's barrier.

Cheers and applause were what they were welcomed to when they landed back in the glamorous city.

Tk ran up to them, a huge smile on his face. "That was awesome! I bet Alex is going to have a hard time convincing us he doesn't believe you now."

"Let's hope." Tar said with a smug look on her face.

"Where's Tai." Sora asked when realization occured that he wasn't there with the rest of them.

"I haven't seen him, maybe he's still with the others." Tk replied.

"Let's go check." Tar solved.

When they reached the dome room they found the door forced open and slashes were scorched across the metallic surface. They walked in slowly, eyes wide with horror.

"What happened?" Sora asked.

"This-This has been done by a digimon." Tar said as she examined the slash marks. Tk's eyes suddenly doubled in size. "What if MetalSeadramon was just a diversion to get us away from the others."

Sora gasped, "And when Tai went back he must've met one of the other Dark Masters." Tar rushed into the room and saw the hole in the wall.

"He went through here." she yelled to the other two.

The three of them climbed through the hole, all of them noticing the scorch marks that alined the walls.

"Who do you think was down here with the others?" Tk asked.

"I'm guessing it had to be a higher ranking Dark Master." Tar replied.

"Myotismon, Piedmon, or LadyDevimon." Sora added. When they rounded another corner, they found it lead to a dead end and the scorch marks had vanished.

"This can't be right." Tk said perplexed as he walked toward the wall. "If they doubled back we would have run into them."

"They must've found another way, then." Tar said, looking at the ceiling and tapping on some of the walls.

"Why do you think the markings stopped?" Sora asked as she examined the walls with black soot on them.

Tar joined her and let her eyes wander over the walls. "The dark Master probably caught up with him."

Tk was still looking at the wall that finished the hall. (A/N: lol, that rhymes _) I don't remember this corridor being a dead end_. he thought. He placed a hand on the wall, and to his astonishment, his hand went through the wall. "Sora, Tar, I think they went this way."

Sora and Tar turned their heads just in time to see Tk go through the wall. Their eyes went wide, they glanced at one another and followed hastly. When they emerged on the other side they found themselves in a very small room, but it was very different from the rest of Light Lagoon; the walls were made of black steel and large diamonds bordered the top of the walls. A gold chandellear hung from the center with rubies, and a large golden throne sat perched on a small landing on the far wall.

"What is this place?" Sora asked the air as she gazed around the room.

"The place where I become the strongest being in Digitania." a heartless voice hissed. They spun around and found themselves face to face with Myotismon, LadyDevimon, and Devimon. LadyDevimon tossed a few of her new gadgets at Tar and Sora and the metal claws bound their arms to their sides and knocked them over.

"Not...these...bloody...things...again." Tar said angrily as they stuggled to get her arms free. Tk rushed to their sides, but none of the Dark Masters took notice of him.

"Finally. 8 of the Sages are in my grasp. Two more and I shall rule all!" Myotismon proclaimed. He strut across the room, eyes flickering with triumph, he sat in the great throne looking at the beings before him. He smirked and snapped him fingers, in doing so the ceiling opened and the reamining Sages fell to the floor. All their arms were pinned, and, except for Matt, who were unconscious, were struggling to get free. Tk dashed to his brother's side.

"These are the deffenders or Digitania." he chuckled. "What a worthless bunch they are. You'd think the _Great Leaders _would have trusted their land with those more capible of actually doing some good." Everyone stopped struggling and their eyes began to glow, making the room gleam with a multi-colored radience. Myotismon smirked.

"Now who to start my rein with?" he said mercilessly. His eyes met each of the Sages, until they landed on one's. He stood up and strode toward Kari. He pulled her to her feet by grasping her neck.

"Kari!" Tai and Tar yelled in unsion. Devimon grabbed Tar's shoulders as her eyes started glowing whiter than ever, and LadyDevimon grasped Tai.

"Say good-bye to your precious sister." LadyDevimon hissed in his ear. Tk ran over and shoved his shoulder at Myotismon, who was surprised by this and dropped Kari to the floor.

"You ok?" he asked as he kneeled beside her. She nodded.

"Thanks Tk." she said grinning. One of the Elemental Crests around Tai's neck suddenly began glowing a dazzling yellow light. It flew over to Tk and dropped over his head. It suddenly errupted in a glow as bright as the sun and when it faded Tk had changed too; His hair had white streaks throughout it and his eyes were yellow with pink specks, he was wearing white shorts and a yellow shirt and his usual white hat.

"Kari's Elemental Crest began glowing brighter than it ever had and the two crests seemed to be glowing as one. The claw-like binds suddenly dematerialized realeasing all the Sages.

"What!" Myotismon seethed. Tar smirked as shadows spun around her and Devimon was thrown across the room, only to be hit by a shower of lightning bolts from Izzy and a flood of water from Joe. Tai burst into flames making LadyDevimon crash into the nearby wall, Sora formed a tornedo at her feet and LadyDevimon was hoisted into the air and slammed into the opposite wall, and Tai and Sora high-fived each other. Mimi shot sveral vines from her fingertips, pinning Myotismon to his throne and Tk and Kari, hand in hand, yellow and pink light spiraled from their hands and wrapped around Myotismon, they were pulled tight and Myotismon howled with pain and fury.

"Now who's worthless." Tar said angrily. Myotismon was panting, but he raised his head he had a sinister smirk and a deadly glint in his eyes.

"At least _we_ won't drown." he pulled out a bat-shaped device with a bright red button on it, he pressed the button and at that moment all three of the Dark Masters faded into a black mist and disappeared.

"What do you think he meant by 'at least they won't drown'?" Sora asked fearfully. At that moment the entire city gave a great lurch, knocking nearly everyone to the ground.

"The barrier!" Tk exclaimed.

"Myotismon's going to destroy the barrier!" Kari added. They all rushed to the secret entrance only to find it was sealed.

"It's blocked." Tai said backing away from it. "Tar, do you think you could get all of us out?"

Tar bit her lip uncertainly. "I'll have to." They all grasped hands and Tar concentrated with all her might. Slowly, one by one, all the Sage's disappeared, leaving behind only their shadows and their different colored glowing eyes. they went up the celing and then through it. When they reached the outside of the great city they saw everyone running franticallly around. Tk hesitated looking at all the fearful faces, one jumped out at him, his mother. She must've returned from her voyage to the surface, only to be destroyed with the city. Tk couldn't leave, this was his home, these were the people he cared for most, he couldn't abandon them. Tk's mother looked over at the shadows as though hearing what he was thinking. She rushed over to where the multi-colored eyes were and looked directly into Tk's.

"Go Tk. You are needed far more than the rest of us are. Remember that this place will be with you always." she said soothingly. Tk's shadow nodded slowly and they all scaled the demolishing barrier and back up to the surface.

When they reached the surface they were cold and wet, it was dusk and their heads were filled with the fading image of the great city Light Lagoon.

"That's the nineth city that's been destroyed by the Dark Masters." Joe said spitfully.

"But it's also the nineth Sage that's been discovered since the quest started." Izzy added.

"Where do you think the 10th Sage is?" Mimi asked.

"There's nothing left on the map, so who knows." Tar said taking out the damp parchment.

"Maybe they're supposed to find us." Sora suggested.

"Our parents met long ago to say where the Sages lived, where we lived, so that the Kamiyas could record it on the map. But the 10th Sage's parents must not've come to the meeting." Izzy concluded.

"So where-" Matt, who had woken up recently was interrupted by a rainbow light radiating from behing a rock near the lake. They watched the light for a moment, and without warning the rock in front of it exploded. When the dust cleared it revealed an elderly man in a maroon robe that had white bushy eyebrows. They all stood up and walked towards him cautiously, only to find it was a holigram.

"Sages!" he said enthusistically, "I thought I'd never see the day when you were all together." The Sages glanced at one another.

"Uhh...thanks, but who are you exactly?" Tai asked.

"My name is Genni. And I will be helping you with your quest." he replied.

"Helping? How are you planning on helping?" Sora asked.

"Well just step into my dojo and I'll explain all I can." Genni replied.

"Uh huh. And where is your dojo?" Tar asked.

"You have the location." he said laughing.

"We do?" Kari asked.

"Look on the back of your map." Genni said. Tar flipped the map over, but it was blank.

"There's nothing here." she said, she was starting to think this guy was mental.

"Hold it up to the rainbow light." he replied. Tar did as he said, and before her eyes a new map formed on the back. It showed a small 'x' near the shore of where Digitopia once stood. "Meet me there and all your questions will be answered. Even your dream Tai." he said turning to him. Tai's eyes had grown wide when Genni said this. "Good bye for now children." and with that the holigram of Genni faded away.

"Sounds like we're heading back home." Tar said, her eyes saddened. They hadn't seen what happened to their home in the rush to get out of danger.

"We'll get through it together." Kari encouraged.

"We all will." Matt added. And with the atmosphere much cheerier and the thought of their questions finally being answered they started towards Digitopia.

! me: hope ya'll liked it! sry again for the delay, but my damn pc hasn't been working again and I just got it running yesterday. sooooo R&R! and it might take me till after the holidays to update, but i'll hurry with my next chapter!

AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

_**YamiYai**: lol, course it gets tougher for them. I have a wicked mind like that, muwahahahahahaha, lol, ok. I'm kinda the same way, i can figure stuff out, but i almost always think about it a little later and it's like 'what' so yea, lol. THANX 4 THE REVIEW! (sry it took so long to get up) HAPPY HOLIDAYS!_

_**MattxLuver**: glad u like it ! sry it took so long to update :(, and when the holidays are over, u can bet i'm gonna update ! U ROCK DUDE! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!_

_**JyouraKoumi**: ok listen u fuckin horre slut. i don't give a damn what u think of my story! i see ur reviews on every story i've read AND NOTHING PLEASES U! and i'm not gonna change my ways cuz some slut bitch like u doesn't agree wit me. and even if red isn't ur fave color u ass, it's still mine! and don't u dare bring my family into this! just because ur damn family don't care nuttin for u doesn't give me the right to insult them! **and i hope u burn in hell! **and how can u call urself a real Koumi fan? HELLO! even on koumi fanfics u're still complaining! i'm a Taiora fan for life, u mother fucking bitch, and i can like whatever **I **want, not what **you **want. Screw u bitch._

_**Crimson G**: hey! long time no review, lol, no problem, i luv video games too, me and my sis just completed the Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time game and that kept me busy while my stupid pc wasn't working, grrr... Sonic the Hedgehog rox! YAY! Thanx for the review! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!_

_**mysticalruby**: YAY! glad u liked it! Thanx for the review! U ROCK! sry it took sooooooooooo long to update, stupid pc. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!_

_**HyperAnimeGirl**: ur welcome, and thanx for the compliment bout my name . and glad u like the chapter! U'RE AWESOME! HAPPY HOLIDAYS!_

_**iamkagomeiluvinuyasha**: lol, GO FOR IT! i hate my teachers too . sry it took me sooooooo long to update, i curse this fricken pc! and glad u liked my chapt. that makes me REALLY happy (hyper happy, lol) and that stuff caused Tai to have the dream (oooooohhhh, ahhhhhhh) lol. U R AWESOME! HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO YOU!_

_**star**: YAY! I LUV COOKIES! lol. and if u loved the length of the last chapt, this one must be even better YAY! and taiora fluff good . sooooooooo sry it took me ages to update. CURSE U PC! lol. okay then glad u liked the chapt! u deserve a cookie too . CUZ...(oh boy here it comes) U ROCK! HAPPY HOLIDAYS! _

_**battousai-clau**: YAY! glad u like the last chapt! and, again, sry my stupid pc is stupid, lol. otherwise this chapt would've been up waaaaaaaaaaaay sooner. THANX FOR THE REVIEW! AND HAVE A VERY HAPPY HOLIDAY!_

_**Rayana Wolfer**: YAY! i luv ur reviews XD! Well, that stuff made Tai be able to see the owner of the voice . (lol, me no likey anxiety either, makes my brain hurt, lol) YAY! I had to make Joe the big hero, course . That's how I c him; big hero with a big brain and big fears, lol. and yea i know i rock, lol, j/k. BUT U ROCK MORE! HAPPY HOLIDAYS! _


	8. The Legend and the Tenth Sage

me: YAY! I'm back! okay guess what...I'm not gonna talk a lot today! gasp Kay, well hope ya'll like it! On wit the fic!

"Do you trust that Genni guy?" Matt asked. The Sages were hiking through the dense forest back to Digitopia, or at least what remained of it.

"He knew who we were, and he offered to explain some things." Tk replied. "So I think he's ok."

"Yea, but your mom thought Alex was ok enough to entrust Light Lagoon with, and he turned out to be Myotismon in disguise." Tai added with a slight scowl.

"What've we got to loose?" Mimi asked as she cleared a path by using her magic.

"Our lives." Joe replied, not thrillingly.

Shortly after their escape from the Dark Masters in Light Lagoon they met with an elderly man who called himself Genni. He told them to go to his house on the coast of Digitopia where all their questions would be answered.

"Do you really think he knows what our questions are?" Izzy asked, breaking the momentary silence.

"He could. How else would he know our location." Kari replied.

"So you think he has some sort of looking glass that helps him see all of Digitania." Tar said sarcastically.

"After all we've been through, he could." Sora replied, defending Kari. She turned her attention to Tai, who, for once, was off to the side. His eyes were narrow and you could tell he was deep in thought. She walked beside him, but it looked as though he hadn't noticed. "Tai." she whispered. He jumped at the sound of her voice.

"Hey Sor." he said giving a forced smile.

"What's up?" she asked, nudging him in the ribs. He remained silent. "Tai. What's wrong?" he glanced at her for a moment, but said nothing. "Come on. You know you can tell me anything." she said, looking at him with puppy-dog eyes. He rolled his eyes, but a smile formed on his lips. "Tai, are you thinking about what Genni said. About a dream you had?" she whispered, turning serious.

Tai stopped walking and looked her straight in the eye. "Sor, do you remember when we were at Water Village and you and Tar were captured and I was left with Piedmon?"

"Yea, he was telling you something, right?" she asked.

Tai nodded his head slowly. "At the start of this quest, when we were still at Digitopia, my mom...she told me something after Tar and Kari went out the window. She said the Dark Masters would be looking for me more than the rest. I don't know why, but she's right; Piedmon has been taking every opportunity to get me. At Water Village, he somehow managed to make me see the owner of the voice."

Sora gasped. "You saw her!" she said in shock.

"She is the most evil being on Digitania, I've never felt pain like that before." he added. "Piedmon's on her side, for all we know he's just pretending to be Myotismon's colonel. But one way or another, they all want us dead."

"So, you haven't told anyone, besides me?" Sora asked.

He shook his head solemnly. "When my mom told me, she made sure Kari and Tar weren't able to hear her. I don't think she wanted them to worry about me."

Sora grasped his hand in her own. "We're all in this together. We're all worried about everything that's happening; where the tenth Sage is, who this guy Genni is, where the Dark Masters are. We've got a lot hanging over us, but hopefully we'll get some answers at Digitopia." she said encouragingly. He gave her hand a tight squeeze and flashed her a warm smile before they both ran to catch up with the others.

A dark cloud seemed to have uplifted from the Sages. For the first time in a very long time they talked and laughed with one another. Remembering funny moments from the last time they were all together. Their worries and troubles seemed to vanish behind them...for a while. (A/N: ok, this might be kinda lame, but, hey, they can't stay all serious and worried now that they're all together )

"Remember that one time when Izzy found that little garden snake outside and Matt let it loose in the girls' room." Joe said laughing. A new burst of laughter echoed around the group.

FLASH BACK (A/N: This is 4 years ago, so... Tai/ Sora/ Tar/ Matt are 9, Mimi/ Izzy are 8, Kari/Tk are 7, and Joe is 10)

"Hey Matt," Izzy yelled. Matt turned his head and casually strolled across the green lawn to where Izzy was kneeling.

"Hey Izzy." he said.

"Check this out." Izzy pointed to a long dark green snake slithering through the grass.

"Cool." Matt replied, kneeling beside him. He got a mischivious gleam in his eye. "Hey Izzy, I think I've got an idea."

"Matt, are you sure this is a good idea?" Izzy asked. They were standing outside Kari's room, where an immense amount of giggling and squealing was coming from. Matt held the small snake in his hands as he knelt by the door.

"No, but it'll be funny." he whispered simply. He gently placed the snake on the ground and it slithered under the door.

Izzy and Matt rushed back to the room Tai and Tar shared, and they had just sat down when several screams came from down the hall.

All the guys instinctively turned to Matt and Tai, but Tai was looking as bewildered as the rest.

"What did you do?" Tk asked Matt.

"Nothing." he said in his most convincing innocent voice. Seconds later the door burst open and all four girls ran into the room. Mimi and Kari rushed to Matt and Tk's sides, while Sora and Tar looked pretty shaken, but angry none the less.

"Who put the snake in Kari's room?" Tar demanded as she looked each boy in the eye.

"Wasn't me." Tai said when she gave him a death glare."Uhh...Sor, let's get that snake." he added quickly. Sora nodded, both eager to leave the the interrogation about to occur.

About an hour later, the matter had been settled, and they all fell asleep in Tai and Tar's room.

END FLASHBACK

"Good thing Mimi brought her make-up bag or we probably wouldn't have gotten a good enough revenge." Sora said smirking.

"Yea, too bad they woke up before we could finish." Mimi agreed.

"Then we chased you through the house." Tk added, chuckling still.

"Waking every living soul in the castle." Joe finished.

The laughing stopped when Kari abruptly halted in her tracks.

"I hear footsteps." she whispered. "They're heading our way and whoever it is doesn't sound friendly." Matt, Tai, Tar, and Sora had enough experience with Kari's keen senses at Earth Kingdom to ignore her. Tai, Sora, and Izzy climbed up the nearest trees while the rest hid in the brush.

Seconds later two large digimon stormed through the forest, both looked aggressive and dangerous.

"Ogremon." Joe whispered. The two looked really dumb, but the clubs they held in their hands would definitely cause trouble if they were seen.

"What's Lord Myotsismon want with this place anyway?" one was asking the other.

"He said something about it being a significant place to build headquarters, since it was the Dark Masters' first place they destroyed." the other replied. They continued talking as they made their way through the throng of trees.

The Sages revealed themselves from their hiding places after Kari said they were far enough away.

"Genni's house is at the beach, and the fastest way to get to it is through what remains of Digitopia." Izzy said as he looked at the map once again.

"Yea, but if there are more evil digimon around it'll be way too dangerous." Matt argued. All heads turned to Tai, wanting to know his view on the situation.

He was looking through a gap in the trees, his eyes focused directly on the Dark Continent out at sea.

_Strange _he thought. A moment ago he could've sworn an invisible force of some kind was tugging at him. A searing pain stabbed his forehead. He winced, but the second he turned away from the Dark Continent, it ebbed away slowly.

"Maybe there's some way to get in without being noticed." he suggested.

"Or we could travel through the borders around Digitopia." Mimi added.

"That would take days, plus we'd be closer to Frozen City and we'd be easy targets." Tar argued.

"What about the lake." Kari interrupted.Everyone turned to face her. "You know, the lake outside of Digitopia. There's a cave down there that leads toward the city. But I don't know how far it goes, I never went far enough."

"That seems logical." Izzy agreed. "If it goes far enough, then it could lead us straight to the ocean."

"Or if we're lucky enough, it could lead us right into the Dark Maters' clutches." Joe disagreed.

"That's a risk we'll have to take." Tai said, "It's the only plan we've got, and let's hope it goes to the ocean."

After trudging for a few minutes they stumbled upon a dark eerie lake that was frozen over, black dust that glistened with snowflakes made up the shore; nothing like it was before the Dark Master's invasion.

"You sure this is it?" Sora asked after they gathered around the lake.

Kari nodded her head slowly, "Do you think Myotismon figured out about the entrance?" she asked.

"It's possible," Matt replied.

"The only way to know is to go down there." Tar added. She placed a tentative foot on the ice, but it didn't crack. "It's really thick, so I'm guessing he froze it for a reason."

"Think I can melt it?" Tai asked, looking at her.

"Maybe." she replied, loosing her balance on the ice and nearly falling. Joe offered her his hand and she jumped back to shore.

Tai placed his palm on the glassy surface and a large crack formed in the center. All heads jerked just in time to see a long jagged crack spreading from the middle toward them.

"Wow that was fast Tai." Tk said, impressed.

"I didn't do that." he replied, standing up, the crack had nearly reached them by now.

"But if you're not...then who is?" Sora asked. The crack suddenly came to a halt, and a moment of tense silence followed. The ice gave a lurch, and seconds later a frog-like creature flew out of the frozen water.

"Divermon!" Joe cried. About a dozen harpoons flew from the cracks in the ice, all nearly striking each of the Sages.

Sora thrust an arm toward some approaching harpoons, blowing them off course. "We've got to get out of here." A rumble suddenly shook the ground and two DarkTyrannomon came stampeding out of the nearby trees.

"They've got us surrounded." Izzy yelled.

"Yea, no kidding." Matt added. They began to back away from their foes, creating a circle.

"We can't take them all." Mimi whimpered, a slight fear in her voice.

"We'll have to." Tar argued. "If the Dark Masters show up..."

"Then we'll get out of this before they show up." Tk interrupted.

"FIRE BLAST!" one of the DarkTyrannomon bellowed, obviously ready to battle. Joe raised his hand and a stream of water flew from the black lake, vanquishing the fire blast before it struck Mimi.

Matt froze the fragments of water and pelted them back into the face of the DarkTyrannomon who had attacked first. The DarkT roared in rage and tried to grasp Matt, but was, instead, met with a lightning bolt to the claw (hand/claw, whatever it is). But this only seemed to enrage it more.

"STRIKING FISH!" A Divermon yelled. Several harpoons flew through the air, Kari and Tk formed a pink and golden barrier around the group, and the harpoons bounced off it. But one managed to break through at the bottom and it wrapped around Sora's leg, knocking her off her feet.

"Ah!" she yelped as she collided with the frost-bitten ground. She felt herself being dragged toward the water's edge, then plunging into it's icy surface. She tried to scream, but it came in muffled bubbles. Suddenly she was reminded of the nightmare she had before they found out that Mimi was a Sage. The turning blackness, the feeling of dread surrounding her, and the hopeless atmosphere. Her vision became blurry as she felt her lungs tighten from lack of air. But she saw clearly two glowing red eyes before her. She continued trying to free her leg from the Divermon's clutches, but exhaustion was overcoming her. She was going deeper and deeper into the dark depths.

"Sage of Wind. The only thing standing between me and what I want most." a cold voice suddenly pierced the silent lake. Sora looked around frantically for the owner of the voice, but saw no one. Instead, she saw a shadowy figure advancing towards her. The only thing visible other than her shape was her bloodshot eyes.

"So this is the fabled girl of Love." the figure chuckled. "And I expected more of a challenge to rid the world of you." Her bright eyes were glistening as she spoke. "No matter, the prophecy will never be fulfilled now. You should have said farewell to your pitiful Sages while you had the chance. I will conquer your precious Sage of Flames with tremendous ease with you out of the way." She cackled darkly before vanishing in black smoke.

Sora had no time to figure what she had meant by this. Her lungs were begging for air and she felt herself slowly going in and out of consciousness. Her eyes slowly closed. Behind her eyelids she saw a flash of bright red and orange light streak past her. With the last of her strength she opened her eyes and saw the rope keeping her leg bound to the Divermon's harpoon burned in half. Her eyes closed again, but she felt a hand grab her wrist. A familiar tingling sensation spread throughout her as she felt another hand wrap around her waist. They were headed upward, toward the surface.

She felt her head come above the water, coughing and greedily in-taking air in fresh, sweet gulps.

Echoes of her name came from each of her friends' mouths as she was lifted onto solid ground, where she lay for several minutes catching her breath.

She sat up and opened her eyes. "Oh Sora." Mimi cried, hugging her shoulders, "We were so worried." Sora looked around and noticed that all the digimon who had been there before she was dragged underwater were gone.

"All those evil digimon trapped us and wouldn't let us go after you. You were down there for ages." Kari continued.

"We all thought you were..." Tar stopped. "Well, not all of us." she said smiling as she nudged a soaked Tai in the rips.

"You all right?" he asked her. Sora nodded her head slowly. Tai glanced back at the lake before looking back at Sora, "You saw her didn't you? The shadow with the red eyes." Sora was slightly taken back by Tai knowing who she had met down there, but nodded, she still felt exhausted and wanted to sleep.

"We'd better keep moving." Joe said after looking at them both with confusion, "We don't know if anymore digimon are nearby." With a murmur of agreement they all stood up. Sora stood up, but stumbled slightly.

"Don't worry Sor." Tai said swinging her arm over his shoulder.

"We got your back." Tar added, placing Sora's other arm over her shoulder. Sora smiled graciously at them before her head lolled onto Tai's shoulder and she fell into a deep sleep.

Sora awoke from a dreamless sleep in, to her surprise, an actual bed! She sat up and looked around, she was instantly reminded of a dojo; the walls were a calming white and there were four small white beds, one of which she was resting on, two were on opposite sides of the room. The floor was wooden and different colored patterns decorated the walls.

The door suddenly slid open and Izzy was standing in the doorway. "Oh good, you're up." he said cheerfully.

"Hey Izzy." she said grinning.

"I just came up here to check on you, but since you're up Genni can explain everything to us." he said eagerly.

"So we're at Genni's?" she asked as she got out of the bed and followed Izzy through several hallways.

"Yep, and the curious thing is that we didn't run into a single dark digimon." he replied. He pulled another sliding door to reveal a large room that had a few chairs, a couch, and a small table, a huge window was off in another part of the room where about ten mats lay arranged in a circle. It was in this area where she saw the rest of her friends gathered with an elderly man with incredibly bushy eyebrows.

"Ah." he said turning to see Izzy and Sora walking into the room. "Good to see you awake Miss Takenouchi." Genni greeted. Sora smiled slightly and sat on one of the mats in between Izzy and Tai.

Genni gazed at the face of each Sage, then chuckled. "I never thought I'd see the day when the Sages were reunited, and yet, here you all are, well, all but one. But I believe it is time I explained the Legend of the Sages." The room suddenly became dark and stars of every color and size glowed around their heads. It seemed as though the Sages and Genni were floating in space.

"Long ago, near the beginning of time itself, a great Goddess of immense power created the world we live in today. She sent her children to inhabit the new world. All of whom brought a trait needed for life; Courage, Friendship, Love, Knowledge, Reliability, Sincerity, Trust, Hope, Light, and Peace. The ten children of the Goddess were known as the Blessed Ones.

The Blessed Ones lived together in harmony for many years, but most good things seem to come to an end all too quickly. An evil God grew envious of the prosperous new land and tried to seize it for himself, but the Goddess wouldn't allow it. He grew enraged and sent his own children to fight for Digitania; Fear, Envy, Lust, Greed, Darkness, Death, War, Betrayal, Despair, and Power. These children were known as the Cursed Ones.

For nearly a century the Blessed and Cursed Ones fought for control over Digitania, until the Dark God began to suspect that his children would lose. He formed a plan to insure that he would succeed; he ordered the Cursed Ones to attack the strongest of the Blessed Ones; Courage and Love.

But the Goddess learned of this new plan and confronted the Blessed Ones. They formed a plan, and asked a young boy in one of the villages to help them. He was glad to, and the Goddess and her children joined all their powers together and all the powers of Light were fused into him.

The details about what happened next are, to this day, unknown. But we have learned that the Sages are direct descendants from the Goddess's children. Giving each of you one of the traits that they had.

Of course, the only way to find out which trait is yours, you must each find your Shard. The Ten Shards of Unity are the keys to awaken your full power over the elements, as well as the gift that comes along with these powers.

The Shards, though, were taken by the Dark Masters before you were born. They are now hidden in the most evil places in Digitania, where no one would dare to go. These places happen to be in each region, not to mention, they are the very places that one of the Dark Masters has chosen to rule from. Of course, since there are ten shards and only seven Dark Masters, three of them have two." After Genni finished there was an awed silence that hung in the air.

"So you're saying that we're descendants of the Goddess's children." Joe repeated uncertainly.

"Naturally." Genni replied.

"And we each posses a trait that we receive when we find our Shard." Matt continued. Genni nodded.

"And the Shards are hidden in the most evil areas in Digitania where the Dark Masters are planning to rule from." Izzy continued.

"Which is the next part of our quest." Tk added.

"Very good children, I must say that I thought it would take you all much longer to figure it out than it did." Genni said smiling. "Izzy, I have loaded the places where you must go the get the Shards on you laptop. Now, you should all hurry upstairs and get some well deserved rest...except you two." he said, looking at Tai and Sora.

The remaining Sages gave a final glance toward Tai and Sora, but left the room and walked back through the sliding door.

"I believe that you both have been exposed to a shadow girl with red eyes, am I correct?" Genni asked them. Tai and Sora exchanged a glance before nodding. "I don't want you to feel uncomfortable, but would you explain what it was like for the both of you?" He looked at Tai, urging him to go first.

Tai looked hesitant to explain what had been happening to him, but with a quick deep breath he started."I've been hearing these voices since the beginning of our quest, and when we were in Water Village...Piedmon grabbed me and made it possible for me to see her when I was asleep. I ended up in this weird room and all she had to do was enter it to make me experience the most pain I've ever experienced in my life."

"I can tell that these nightmares have stirred you." Genni said.

Tai nodded, and Genni encouraged him to continue. "She-She has a power, she can manipulate people, control them, but she said I'm difficult to control. Then she touched my face, and...it felt like my head would have split open. That's when I woke up."

Genni seemed to consider this before turning to Sora and nodded for her to begin her story.

"Earlier today, a Divermon tried to drag me to the bottom of the lake outside of Digitopia. It was really dark and the girl just appeared out of no where. She said that I was the only one standing in the way of what she wants most, and she mentioned a prophecy. Then she said something about..." she turned her gaze from Genni's, now, grave face to Tai, "you." Genni stood up and began pacing the room after Sora had said this.

"I need to think for a while, you two should get some sleep." he said giving a small grin.

Not needing to be told twice they both exited the room and began walking towards the rooms.

"What do you think she wants with you?" Sora asked Tai when they were out of earshot.

"I haven't got a clue." Tai replied. There was a comfortable silence between them until Sora spoke.

"Um Tai..." she started. "I never got the chance to thank you."

"Thank me for what?" he asked, cocking his head slightly.

"For um...saving my life." by now her cheeks were slightly pink.

He smiled at her. "Course, you're my best friend, what else would I have done."

"It was really brave, and...if it weren't for you I probably wouldn't be here." by now they had reached their rooms, which they were sharing with the other Sages. "So thanks." she gave him a quick peck on the cheek, which made them both start blushing madly.

"Um..no problem. Night." Tai said quickly.

"Night." Sora replied. And they both entered the different rooms.

"Hey Sora, what'd - well why do you look so flustered." Tar asked when she saw Sora enter, her cheeks bright red.

"No reason." Sora replied, a little too quickly. Mimi, Tar, and Kari all smirked.

"Something happened." Kari said, as they all gathered around Sora's bed.

"No." Sora interrupted.

"Wait, Genni wanted to talk to Sora _and Tai_." Mimi said, all three of them were completely ignoring Sora's angry outbursts.

"HA! I knew you two liked each other!" Tar cried triumphantly.

"What?" Sora exclaimed. "I have no clue what you're talking about."

"Oh please Sora." Tar said rolling her eyes.

"It's so obvious you and Tai like each other." Kari added.

"Almost as obvious as Kari and Tk liking each other." Mimi added.

Kari blushed lightly. "Or Matt and Mimi." she replied smugly.

They were all howling with laughter while each girl tried to defend herself, but the laughter stopped when a loud CRASH! exploded through the house.

Tar sprang to the door and threw it open. Matt had opened the door across from them to see what was happening.

"What was that?" he asked Tar as everyone began to emerge from the rooms into the hallway.

"Sounded like it came from down this hall." Izzy responded. All the Sages began running down the hall until they found a giant hole in the wall leading directly through the room with the mats.

Izzy ran his fingers over the scorch marks left on the edges. "This hole was caused by a lot of force excerted within small range of whoever caused it with-"

"Could you explain that in english?" Mimi interrupted.

"An explosion caused by a powerful digimon." Joe simplified.

"Precisely what I was saying." Izzy added.

"Well, well, well all Sages here and I've forgotten my autograph book." a chilling voice chuckled from behind them. To the Sages' horror, Piedmon was standing mere feet from them, a dangerous look in his eye. "No matter, I suppose I'll just have to take a souvenir back to my mistress." He took a golden necklace shaped like a hexagon with 6 black gems at each point. Black mist began creeping out of the center in spirals. It slowly began to circle each Sages, and that was all any of them remembered.

Each Sage opened their eyes at about the same time.

"What was that?" Matt asked, rubbing his head, which had been slammed against the wall when he passed out.

"Some sort of charm." Izzy replied, also rubbing his head. "I'll go look for Genni."

"Is everyone ok?" Tar asked. Mummers of 'yes' answered her.

"Wait, where'd Tai go?" Sora asked.

"He was standing beside you wasn't he?" Kari asked, a slight panic in her voice.

"Didn't Piedmon say something about a souvenir?" Joe asked tentatively.

As the realization suddenly started to sink in worried glances took hold of all the Sages' faces

"Why would he have only taken one of us, I mean, isn't Myotismon after all the Sages." Tar asked, you could easily tell her blood was boiling, and that she was looking for any logical explanation she could that proved her twin hadn't been abducted.

"Piedmon's not _really_ working for Myotismon." Sora said, also with an edge of worry. Everyone gave her a confused look. "Tai told me that Piedmon was working for a Mistress. The shadow with the red eyes. She's the voice." she exclaimed, as the pieces were being put into place.

"Guys! Genni's not here!" Izzy cried, running to join the group.

"Neither is Tai." Joe said.

"We must be missing something." Matt thought aloud. "Why would they only one of us, and then take Genni?"

"Well, Genni might not seem like it, but he's actually brilliant." Izzy explained. "He knows more about Digitania and it's history than anyone I know. Plus, he knows a ton of stuff about prophecies and-"

"Wait, prophecies?" Sora repeated.

"Yea, you should see some of the stuff he's learned from-"

"When I was in that lake, the shadow girl told me something about a prophecy. Maybe she told Piedmon to capture Genni to get info about the prophecy." Sora concluded.

"But, why would she order Piedmon to take Tai?" Kari asked.

Nobody seemed to know this.

"We'll just have to go and save him, we can find out when we get there." Tk proclaimed.

Meanwhile, Tai hadn't suffered from the mist. It didn't seem to effect him at all. But when his friends had fallen, it distracted him long enough for Piedmon to pull out a new invention of torture; it was a simple black band, but the moment he fastened it around Tai's upper arm black lightning struck all over his body, weakening him. He tried to use his element, but it shocked him twice as much.

Piedmon chuckled evilly before grasping both his wrists in one hand and placing one of his knives at his neck.

It turns out, Genni had suffered a similar fate, only he was knocked out, he was swung over Piedmon's shoulder.

His friends, although unconscious, hadn't been touched, and Tai wasn't going to bring them up in case Piedmon decided to take them along too.

They left Genni's house using the same fog, and it was the weirdest thing Tai had ever experienced. He felt his whole body go numb and he watched himself disappear from his feet upward. A loud screeching noise suddenly pierced the foggy atmosphere like a knife. The screeching was so in-human and loud that it was unbearable. Tai wanted to clamp his hands over his ears, but the numb feeling in his arms kept him from doing so, and Piedmon seemed to enjoy seeing him in pain. Tai gave him a cold glare through gritted teeth, and slowly the screeching ceased.

The fog slowly evaporated, leaving them on the steps of an evil looking castle on a dark place Tai had viewed from afar for as long as he could remember; the Dark Continent. Piedmon pressed the knife further into his neck, causing a few drops of blood to fall on the polished surface.

"Enjoying the sights are we?" he said smirking. Tai said nothing. "Worried about thy pathetic friends aren't we." Tai's fists clenched, but again, he said nothing. "Better watch that temper boy," he spat.

He gave him a shove into the castle and, reluctantly, Tai made his way towards the looming castle before him.

They reached the giant oak doors that secured the entrance to the castle, and Tai got a good look at how evil this place was; the stones were as black as death and bones littered the nearby area. A slight throbbing formed in his head, but he tried to ignore it.

With a wave of his gloved hand, the doors opened and Piedmon stepped inside, Tai following, knowing he didn't have much choice.

The inside was far worse than the outside. The long hallways were only lit by small candelabras and a long carpet with strange stains stretched as far as the eye could see. Doors lined the hallway, all looking exactly the same, but the noises behind them could chill you to the bone.

Piedmon strode through numerous doors, glancing back to make sure Tai was following. They went through one door that was pulsating with darkness, Piedmon took a key with a skull at the end of it and unlocked the door.

He grasped Tai by his shirt and practically threw him into the room and followed, slamming the door behind him.

Several groans echoed around the dark room. Tai's head gave a tremendous throb and he staggered slightly, chains hung from the damp ceilings and dried blood was splattered against the wall. He realized to his alarm that this was a torture chamber.

"Taichi...Taichi...darling is...that you?" a weak voice from the corner asked. Tai whirled around and saw his mother chained to the wall. He broke free of Piedmon's clutches and rushed over to her.

"Mom?" he whispered. The woman before him didn't look anything like his mother, but he was sure it was her; her brown hair was mixed with blood and her face was pale, her eyes were shadowed, and wounds and scars were shown all over her body.

"Oh, Tai," she muttered, the light that still remained in her eyes enlightened her face and a warm smile crossed her lips.

She hugged him tightly, then her eyes met Piedmon's. She stood up, swaying slightly, but the glare in her eyes showed no sign of weakness.

"So sorry to break up this _heartwarming_ moment, but the boy has an appointment with my Mistress that cannot wait. And Sanira isn't it about time you joined the other _Great _Leaders?" Piedmon said smirking.

_"Nomdeip tel mih og, s'eh tsuj a yob_." Sanira pleaded.

_"Yrros, tub taht si ton ym ecalp. Sulp...D'i evol ot ees siht eno derutrot litnu eh skaerb_." Piedmon replied smirking broader than ever.

_"Uoy kniht M'i deracs fo uoy ro ruoy ssertsim Nomdeip_." Tai yelled, the fury within him reaching a boiling point, his eyes were glowing like fire as the black lightning flickered around him. _"On M'i ydaer ot ecaf reh." _

_"Iat! Uoy t'nod wonk tahw s'ehs ekil! Uoy evah on aedi_-" Sanira exclaimed.

_"Ho, tub eh seod Arinas_." Piedmon interrupted, _"Ruoy nos ereh sah neeb ni tcatnoc htiw reh ynam semit_." he chuckled.

_"Eay, dna hcae emit ew teem, ym dertah rof reh sworg_." Tai spat. Sanira couldn't help but smile at these words.

_"M'i erus fi ehs erew ereh taht dluow eb nekat sa a tnemilpmoc_." Piedmon replied.

"You're right...I would." a voice so sinister and evil that Tai was clutching his head at the mere sound of it. The three of them turned their heads and saw red eyes peering at them from a dark corner. She was starring intently at Tai who was doubled over in agony while Sanira hugged his shoulders, glaring at the red eyes.

"Mistress." Piedmon bowed his head low.

"I wondered what was taking so long Piedmon. But now I see that your delay was due to a family reunion." Her eyes flickered slightly. Piedmon winced, but did not move. She walked over to Tai and Sanira, both glaring at her with hateful looks. "The boy." she said sternly.

"Over my dead body." she yelled.

"That can be arranged you know." the girl replied calmly.

"No," Tai interrupted, "I'll go." he said sternly, although his voice was pained and weak. The shadow girl smirked and pulled a golden chain with a red aura around it from out of no where and held it before him. Tai didn't take it, but glared at her.

"Take it, it will ease the pain in your head." she said forcefully. Tai was unsure if he should take it, but the pain in his head was growing, so he placed it around his neck and the pain died almost instantly. She grabbed his arm and pulled him next to her.

"Tai..." Sanira called, her voice weakening. The shadow girl narrowed her eyes and a red aura formed around Sanira. A pained expression covered her features before she collapsed.

"Mom!" Tai cried, but her grip on his arm was too tight.

"Piedmon, I want no disturbances. Leave the old man here." she commanded. "I need to speak to the boy of Flames alone."

Piedmon once again bowed his head, and a black mist suddenly appeared around Tai and the shadow girl. When it cleared, seconds later, Tai found himself in the room where his dream had taken place. He shuddered at the memory.

"Glad to see your memory's not as bad as your mother's." she smirked, and for the first time, she sounded human. The glow in her eyes vanished, but her pupils remained bloodshot. "She conveniently forgot where you were headed, lucky we found you though."

"Who are you." Tai asked as she walked over to the large oval-mirror.

"Call me Gem." her eyes flickered again. "But that is not why I have brought you here...I crave power Tai. I want revenge for what I have been put through all my life, but the only ones standing in my way are you and your friends. So, I need you to join me...or be killed." she said simply.

"I won't join you...and I have a feeling you won't kill me." Tai replied, his turn for smirking. A dangerous glint flashed through her eyes. She walked over to Tai, both were glaring daggers at the other.

She grabbed the front of his shirt and slammed him against the wall. "Don't be so sure." she hissed.

There was silence for a moment before Tai asked "What do you want with me."

Gem was still pinning him against the wall, her red eyes flickering. "I've told you before...you and your powers."

"But why me?" his eyes still narrowed.

Gem smirked at this, and pinned his arms to the wall. She forced her lips to his. Tai clenched his fists and broke away after a few seconds. "Piedmon!" Gem cried, smirking.

She still had him pinned to the wall when Piedmon opened the door. "Yes Mistress." he bowed his head again, eying the two suspiciously.

"Show him where he will be staying. I have business to attend to." She winked at him before disappearing into the shadows. Tai glared at her until she was gone.

"Come boy, unless you want to be stuck in here all night." Piedmon commanded. Not wanting to spend another minute in there he walked out of the room, closely followed by Piedmon.

Piedmon led him through more doors and down some stairs before reaching a black door with red gems on it. He pushed the doors open to reveal a room with torches lining every wall and a large black metal cage in the center. He threw Tai in slamming the door and locking it, smiled evilly and left.

Tai glared at his retreating back and rubbed his arm, which had turned red where Gem had grabbed him.

"Are you alright?" a calm voice behind him asked. He turned around and saw a pair of glowing crimson eyes in a shadowy part of the prison.

"Yea, I'm fine. But who are you?" he asked.

"Oh, sorry." she stepped from the shadows and her eyes stopped glowing, revealing her eye's emerald color. Long red hair hung past her shoulders, she wore a black shirt with jeans, and a kind smile lay on her lips. "I'm Meg." (A/N: Dun dun duuuunnn...lol) she flashed him a warm smile.

"I'm Tai." he replied returning the smile with one of his own. "Do you know why we've been captured?" he asked

"Truthfully, I'm clueless as to why I'm here. I don't even know how I got here." she said sitting on the ground resting her head in her hands.

"I know how I got here, but I don't know why either." Tai added ad he gazed around the room. Meg looked at him for a second before a glittering gold object caught her eye.

"Is-is that an Elemental Crest!" she exclaimed.

"Yea." he replied, taking it in his hand. Her eyes widened as she took another golden ring from beneath her shirt.

"You're a Sage!" they cried in unison.

"Do you think that's why we were captured?" she asked standing upright.

"But why just us? I was with the other Sages and Piedmon didn't seem interested in them at all." Tai replied.

"Hmm...I see what you mean. Wait, wait, wait. You were with the other Sages!" she said excitedly. Her eyes were wide with curiosity and a wide smile formed on her lips. Tai nodded. "Well, what're they like?" she asked curiously.

"Well, there's Matt, Izzy, Joe, Tk, Kari, Tar, Mimi, and Sora." Tai told her about each of them; how Matt's the cool rebel, Izzy's the computer genius, Joe's smart, but worrys a lot, Tk and Kari being the youngest but controlling one of the more powerful elements, Tar his twin who's slightly the opposite of him, Mimi the sincere pink princess, and Sora the loving tomboy and his best friend.

They talked for what seemed like hours, learning that they had much in common. Meg was very interested in the other Sages and the adventures they had already had, and Tai was equally interested in hearing about Meg's quest to find the others.

It grew late into the night before both fell asleep.

The remaining 8 Sages were standing on the beach outside of Genni's house. (which was underwater).

"Do you think they went there?" Kari asked, all eyes were on the Dark Continent.

"I hope not." Tk replied.

"We have to get over there and make sure." Sora added.

"But how do we get there?" Mimi asked. That was the question buzzing in everyone's mind.

"Sages?" a booming voice from the sea asked. Everyone whirled around to see a large whale perched on the beach.

"Whoa, it's Whamon." Izzy said enthusiastically.

"Hello Sages. Genni contacted me and asked me to give you a lift to the Dark Continent." he said cheerfully.

"How do you plan on doing that?" Joe asked fearfully.

"Just climb in my mouth." he replied as if he were talking about the weather.

"Eww..." Mimi squealed.

"I'd let you ride on my back, but the Dark Masters are looking for you, and if we're spotted...I don't want to think of what would happen to all of you." Whamon added.

"Come on Meems, we've got to help Tai and Genni." Matt encouraged. Mimi looked as though she would have rather left Tai and Genni on the Dark Continent than go in Whamon's mouth, but she shook her head and agreed to go.

"On one condition." she mentioned. "Swim as fast as you can." she laughed.

Whamon opened his large mouth and each Sage climbed inside.

As his large mouth closed securely he pushed himself into the water and began swimming towards the Dark Continent.

"Tai, wake up!" Meg whispered furiously.

"What?" he asked, sitting upright.

"We're getting out of here." she said standing up. "I figured out how to get those armbands off." she beamed.

"Great, I'll be able to melt the bars." he said. A dark red aura formed around her and dark wisps of magic covered the armbands they wore, shattering them. Tai smirked as he felt his power run through him again. He glared at the bars, which suddenly started changing colors. When they reached a gold color they curled backwards, leaving an opening for them to escape.

"Impressive." Meg nodded.

"What'll really impress me is if you know the way out of here." Tai replied.

Meg opened her mouth to say something, but stopped herself. "Yea, I kind of...have no idea where to go."

"Hmm..." Tai thought. Suddenly it hit him_; the chain! If I take it off then I'll be able to sense which doors to go through_! He took the chain from around his neck, and the small throbbing returned to his head. "Follow me."

They ran up the stairs to the wooden doorway, and Meg slid some of her black magic into the keyhole, opening the door with ease. Tai turned his head toward one half of the hall, then the other. The second one gave him an immense throb.

"I don't think we want to go that way." he said running down the opposite side of the hallway.

"But how do you-" Meg started, but decided to ask later, and pursued behind him. They ran down hallways and through doors, and to Tai's relief, most of them were familiar. It was only when they reached a certain door that Tai stopped, dead in his tracks. "What's wrong?" Meg panted.

"T-This room. My...mother's in it." he muttered.

"This is the torture chamber!" she cried in shock. Tai nodded slowly. "Well, come on then. We've got to save those people." They both rushed into the chamber, only to find it empty.

Tai let out a groan and pulled the chain from his pocket and placed it around his neck. "This place is starting to freak me out, let's go." he urged. Meg nodded and they turned to leave, but the door slammed shut. For a few moments they were cloaked in a blanket of darkness, then Tai lit a small orb of flames in his hand, giving a small amount of light. Meg was shivering beside him. They both tugged at the door, but it wouldn't budge. They were trapped.

"Thanks for the lift Whamon!" Matt yelled. They all waved to the departing figure in the water before turning to look at their surroundings. Dark, bleak, and in ruins. Izzy, Mimi, and Joe were swaying slightly, clutching their stomachs.

"Let's find a better way back." Joe staggered.

"I didn't calculate how rough the waves would be." Izzy added.

"So where do you think they were taken?" Kari asked.

"I could look around," Tar volunteered, "It'll be a lot faster knowing where we're going." Her eyes began to glow white and she disappeared, her shadow the only thing remaining, and she sped off.

"This place is so...dead." Tk said, looking around.

"It's been populated by evil for decades, it's no wonder." Sora added.

Suddenly a black shape on the ground came rushing at them. Tar reappeared, panting. "I think I found them." she said.

"Where?" Kari asked eagerly.

"In a castle, not too far from here, I'm sure I heard Piedmon's voice."

"Then let's go." Mimi said.

"But how do we get there undetected?" Izzy asked.

"Kari and I found out that if we join our powers we can teleport." Tk said.

"All of us?" Matt asked.

"Hopefully." Kari replied.

"That's probably the best plan we've got, so let's go with it." Sora agreed.

Tk and Kari joined hands and a golden stream of light formed a ring around all the Sages, then a pink stream entwined with the golden stream. The magic slowly tighted around them, and a dome that glittered like the sunrise shot from the magic streams and enclosed around them. There was a bright flash of light and where they stood, there was only charred earth.

They reappeared in the blink of an eye outside the castle Tar had seen. Instantly the Sages realized why Tar had thought this was where they were taked; with it's gloomy atmosphere and perilous features, nobody would go within a mile radius of this place unless they were forced there.

They slowly proceeded toward the oak doors, silently debating on who would go first.

The Sages proceeded inside the castle, all seemed very nervous. Sora was racking her brain for any memory of this place that Tai may have mentioned. But the only room he ever described was a room with black curtains and a huge mirror.

"Guys...do you smell that?" Kari asked. Everyone lifted their heads to sniff the air, but the only smell wafting through the halls was that of decaying flesh. Kari sniffed the air again, "It smells like...smoke."

"Smoke?" Mimi repeated with confusion.

"Let's follow it." Matt suggested. With Kari in the lead they set off toward the room, where, obviously, a small fire was burning. Kari haulted them after walking through dozens of doors.

"It's in here." she motioned toward a very depressing door at the end of the hallway. The smoke was evident now, and all the Sages smelt traces of it, but very little.

Sora rushed to the door, only to find it jammed. "How do we open it?" she asked.

"Sora?" a voice from behind the door asked.

"Tai?" they all cried in unsion.

"Yea it's me, we're trapped in here." he yelled through the thick door.

"Hang on, we'll get you out." Tk replied.

"Stand back!" Sora yelled. She raised her hands so her palms were facing the door. A silver aura formed around her and a flurry with the force of a hurricane flew from her arms, blowing the door down. Tai stood in the doorway, his eyes glowing like flames and beside him stood a figure the rest of the Sages had never seen before.

"Glad to see you're okay." Tar said giving him a punch on the shoulder, adding a smile.

"Same to you." he replied, rubbing his shoulder slightly. Kari and Sora both gave him quick hugs before noticing the girl standing with them. Everyone turned to Tai for an explanation. "Guys, this is Meg. She's the tenth Sage."

The affect of those four words was full of excitement. Finally, the first quest was done. They were all there; Fire, Ice, Wind, Earth, Shadow, Electricity, Water, Light, and Darkness.

There was a brief moment when time seemed to stop. Everyone instantly rushed to greet the new and final addition to the group of friends. But a trembling interrupted this reunion.

"We'd better save the celebrating once we get out of here." Meg yelled over the rumble. Everyone started rushing towards the door, through the crumbling hallways and demolishing structures. There were several close calls that some of them barely made it past. One being Kari nearly getting flattened by a large falling rock. And Mimi having to grasp a candelabra to save herself from falling through the decaying floor.

"The door...it's blocked." Joe yelled. They had finally made it through the labyrinth of doors only to find the large oak doors being blocked by dozens of large, heavy rocks.

"How do we get out?" Izzy asked the air.

"We could climb over them." Tk called as more and more of the castle began showering down on the group.

"That's way too dangerous. I'd feel safer standing here than trying tho climb those things." Matt replied. A huge boulder suddenly fell inches from where he was standing. "But only by a little." he added.

"I've got it." Meg yelled, running to the front of the group. A black aura encircled her, making her red hair look as though it were glowing. She opened her eyes which were glowing fire engine red and the same aura formed around all the rocks. They were lifted into the air, and all the Sages scrambled underneath. Meg rushed to the other side just as they toppled back to the ground.

"Impressive." Izzy said, his hands on his knees as he panted.

"Thanks." Meg replied, also panting.

"We'd better get out of here, we're still in enemy territory." Tar said.

"Kari, Tk, can you teleport us back to Genni's?" Mimi asked, not eager to ride Whamon again.

"Genni!" Sora exclaimed, suddenly aware that they had not saved him.

"Relax Sor, I'm pretty sure he escaped with our parents before the castle was destroyed." Tai replied simply.

"Our parents!" all Sages cried in unsion.

"Oh sorry." Tai laughed, he had forgotten they didn't know. "Piedmon captured our parents, that's why we went to the torture chanber in the first place. But I think Genni must have had a plan and gotten all of them out."

"Were they okay?" Mimi asked, tears in her eyes.

"I only got to see my mom." he admitted guiltily. "But I'm sure they were all there. Piedmon let that slip."

"Well, let's g-"

A bright rainbow stream of light interrupted their converstaion, and a holographic Genni appeared before them.

"Greetings Sages." he said cheerfully.

"Genni!" they all exclaimed, staggering backwards from shock.

"Sages, I'm afraid that your parents and I have gone into hiding. They can't be found by Piedmon, or there will be dire consequences. But I cannot tell you the location."

"Why?" Kari asked.

"Because of the many dangers you are sure to endure. One of the powers is mind-reading, and I don't want us to be discovered. When you find the Ten Shards I will contact you. But for now I must wish you luck," suddenly the image began to fade, "Whoops sorry, next time I'll get more quarters before sending a message. Good-bye."

Genni's image evaporated as fast as it appeared, leaving the Sages alone and dumbfounded.

"So we don't even get a break before starting another quest!" Mimi screamed. A few laughs erupted around the group.

"Well, now that we're all together, I don't see why we should put it off." Joe added.

"Perscisly what Genni must think." Izzy agreed.

"First let's get out of this death trap." Tk suggested.

"Yea, and let's find another way out of here. I don't really want to ride in Whamon's mouth." Matt laughed.

Tai gave Sora a quizzical look. "I'll tell you later." she said chuckling.

"Can you two teleport us back to Digitania?" Tar asked Tk and Kari.

"You can teleport!" Meg asked excitedly.

"Yep," Tk beamed.

"But after we get us across seas, I don't think we'll be able to get us to the place on the map by teleporting." Kari added glumly.

"It'll give us time to figure out the things Genni told us, and do we really want to show up at one of the Dark Masters' homes." Tai said.

"Good point." Sora added.

"Well, next stop, Digitania and our new quest." Meg grinned. The Sages joined hands and the same crackling pink and yellow magic filtered around them, a bright flash of light, and the ground they stood on seconds before, was barren again.

me: YAY! Another chapie done . So how'd u like it? Plz send me ideas 4 evil names for the Dark Masters' lairs, I got some, but I need a couple more, so if ya got any good ideas, tell me! R&R!

_**Rayana Wolfer: **YAY! Glad 2 hear from u! That could be Emprissmon's voice...but it might not, muwahahahahaha. lol. Yep, Alex was Myotismon, an undercover deal. Batman wannabe, lol, yea, I guess Myotismon is a Batman wannabe. Hehe. LUV UR REVIEWS! UR AWESOME! Go get some chocolate cake _

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha: **YaY! I gots a review buddy, ahem sorry, i've been hanging out with my friend Steffi WAY too much, lol. And thanx for agreein wit me, . For my first story, she/he was the first one to review my story, and it made me all upset and stuff. But whateva, right. U ROCK! YAY! Glad u liked the last chappie , and i is glad u know who the next Sage is cuz that means u read my other one too! YAY! LATERZ!_

_**star**: AWWWW...Ur Review WAS TOTALLY AWESOME! lol. And if i'm the coolioest person, then ur the totally rockinest person in the universe . GO U! And u really think it's one of the best ! YAY! AND I LUV ESSAY REVIEWS! (if they're good, that is ) With every word it's like, WOW! and it just makes u want to write more . Glad u liked the last chappie, hope u like this one too! And Amen to one of the all time greatest reviewers in history! U ROCK! I'll update ASAP! LATERZ! (P.S. I luv cookies too , well i like pretty much anything sweet ) _

_**MattxLuver**: THANX FOR THE REVIEW! Sry if it was too long, I have a hard time stopping once I start, lol. U ROCK! YAY! Peace Out!_


	9. Corpse Cove

me: hiya . HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! Thought I'd update as your valentines day treat, although I was thinking about submitting a short story dedicated the valentines day, but I thought this would be a lot better .

**!DO NOT READ THIS: **

If you are reading this, then...I JUST USED REVERSE PSYCOLOGY ON YOU SO HA HA. clears throat anyway. I wanted to publically thank Sari Kamiya01 - Mika Takaishi01 for letting me use her charater Tar and being so nice about it, **THANK YOU SOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!** (I replied to ur review at the bottom too )

Well, that's all I got to say (readers: THANK GOODNESS!) So on wit the fic!

"Is it just me, or are we always in a forest?" Joe asked. Everyone turned their heads to look at him. After escaping yet another near death experience the Sages had retreated back to Digitania in hopes of having a peaceful night. But thoughts of their recent encounter with the Dark Continent were still freshly engraved in their brains.

"I still can't believe our parents are alive." Matt stated, breaking the comfortable silence that fell around the group.

"I know. After all we've been through, this seems like a wish we made that will shatter at any moment." Mimi agreed.

Less than 24 hours ago they had all presumed their families to be dead. But Tai had seen his mother, spoken with her, and that gave all of them another small sliver of hope, knowing that their parents were all alive and waiting.

Waiting. That word is one of the few words that increases worry and dread. Waiting. Waiting for what? Waiting to hear news that a loved one is gone, waiting to find your deepest fear come true.

And why were they waiting in the first place? Why didn't they instinctively rush to their childrens' aid, to help them in their greatest time of need? It was because the Dark Masters were looking for them, using every method of tracking to find them, and the Sages weren't willing to take the risk of their parents being discovered, no matter how anxious they were to see them again.

"So, where's our first stop?" Meg asked. Meg was the newest addition to the Sages. They met her on the Dark Continent when they ventured across seas to find Tai. As it turns out, she too had been captured and brought there, and already knew how to control most of her powers.

Izzy began typing on his laptop at lightning speed. He read over the list that appeared beside a large map, his eyes growing wider with every word. "The places we have to go to have deadly reputations; Shadow Realm, Labyrinth of Illusion, Vile Valley, Wicked Woods, Misfortune Mountain, Corpse Cove, and Spiral Mountain."

With every name Izzy mentioned, at least one of the Sages flinched. "Several of them have specific areas: like in the Wicked Woods, Tricky Grove is where I'm getting the most readings.

There's an underground city or something deep within Misfortune Mountain; Underground Circut. You can tell that must be Machinedramon's lair. But the rest of the locations are surrounded by so much evil that it's interfering with my computer scans." (A/N: I'd like to thank Rayana Wolfer for giving me some of these ideas! You ROCK!)

"We should get as much information as we can about each of these places, so we know what we're up against." Sora suggested.

"Well, the closest place from here is Corpse Cove." Tar said, looking over Izzy's shoulder to get a view of the screen.

"What!" Joe cried, he had lept to his feet. "We can't go there first!"

Everyone looked at him, his face had gone several shades paler and his eyes held a mass amount of horror behind his glasses.

"Joe. Are you okay, we've never seen you get this upset about something." Tk asked.

Joe seated himself down and held his head in his hands for a few moments. "I've had personal experience with that place, and I'll never forget it."

"What happened?" Meg asked.

"My-my brother went there once, a long time ago."

"Jim?" Tai asked.

"No. I had another older brother, Josh. He went there to study some undiscovered plants to use for new medicines, but...he didn't come back. My dad and Jim left to find him a week later, and they found him. But...he was paler than a sheet, his eyes were bulged and mirrored with fright...blood was dripping all over him...he was dead."

Tar put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Was he was scared to death?" she asked.

"We don't know." Joe admitted. "But he was found outside of Corpse Cove, and there have been other disappearances around that place too."

An eerie silence followed. Suddenly this new quest was coming into full alight. These places were dangerous. Not only were they dangerous, they were real. Actual people with lives and souls had died in these places, and here they were, a bunch of teens, going head-on with the evils concealed within the darkest reaches of Digitania.

"What's the next location?" Tai asked, he didn't want Joe to have to dwell on memories of his dead brother for more than he had to.

Joe gave him a grateful glance for changing the subject.

"Shadow Realm," Izzy replied. Tk winced

"I know all about that place." Tk shuddered. "It's a cave at the base of Mount Infinity, and those that go in...don't come back out. Well, one did...and he said that your greatest fears come to life in that place. One time, a long time ago, I got to close to the entrance to the cave, and I heard screaming. I haven't gone anywhere near it since."

"Then there's the Labyrinth of Illusions." Izzy read on.

"I've heard about that place." Mimi said. "It's said to be a maze beneath the desert. There isn't a soul alive who's been in there and come out. But I have heard that you have to battle yourself down there."

"What do you think that means?" Kari asked. Mimi shrugged with a puzzled look etched on her face.

"Vile Valley." Izzy continued.

Sora and Tai shivered shivered. "It's a valley a ways away from Windy Glen. There's so much mist lingering at the bottom that you can't see through it, and thorns grow up the sides of the hills. Going in there could be fatal, since you can get lost and never be found, or killed by whatever lurks there."

"Wicked Woods."

"That place is right on the border of the Glacier." Matt said. "And the trees are paralyzed, so they're black and leaf-less. Also it's always night there. My dad told me never to go near it. He said there was an evil trapped in that place that would do anything to escape."

"Misfortune Mountain." Izzy started. "Is a mountain range in the middle of the desert. They say it's cursed, since something ill-fated always happens for those who try to climb it, and most of the victims die from whatever it is. Gotsumon used to inhabit the area, but they were scared out by...something." he trailed off. "The last area is Spiral Mountain."

"I've never even heard of that place." Mimi said.

"Me neither." Tai agreed.

"That's Piedmon's new lair." Meg stated. "I heard him boosting about it to his Mistress. He said it was almost like a tower where all dark energy ends up. Myotismon and Piedmon were able to fuse a lot of Digitania together to create a spiraling mountain."

"So that only leaves one thing to decide." Tai added. "Where to go first."

After a long debate, a few arguments, and several angry outbursts, it was settled. They would start with Corpse Cove, although Joe seemed very distressed about this. It was closest, being only a few miles north of their position and it remained on the coast, so they wouldn't have to back-track.

By the time the matter was settled, it was very late. Kari and Tk immediately went to sleep, and moments later Mimi, Izzy, Tar, Joe, Matt and Meg joined them in dreamland.

Sora waited until she was certain all the Sages except Tai and herself were asleep before she dared to ask what had happened at the Dark Continent. Tai had seemed determined to avoid the subject at all costs, but it was just him and her now. They had promised to be best friends and tell each other anything and everything, and Sora wasn't going to let him forget that.

She clutched the necklace he had given her when she first joined the quest for comfort before asking "So, what really happened?"

Tai gave her a confused look.

"What happened at the Dark Continent?" she asked, clarifying what she had just asked.

"I told you and the others already." he said, but Sora noticed a small shimmer in his flame colored eyes that only a true best friend could see.

"You told me that Piedmon took you to see your mom in the torture chamber, then Gem, or whatever her name was showed up, and the next thing you said was that you were in a cell with Meg. But there's a space in the middle of that. What happened when she showed up?" Sora said sternly.

Tai had been dreading this question ever since he told the story. He really didn't want to tell anyone, but he especially didn't want to tell Sora that she kissed him. But looking in her eyes, he knew he couldn't lie to her_. Damn those georgous eyes_. he thought angrily. He ran a hand through his hair.

"When we left the torture chamber, we were in the same room that we were in during my dream. She gave me this chain that somehow decreased the pain in my head," he took the chain from within his pocket and handed it to Sora. "She said she wanted revenge, for all that she had been put through, and that we were the only ones standing in her way. But...I doubt she'll kill us. She threatened to, but I don't think she will."

"Why?" Sora asked. "She had the perfect opportunity to stop us by capturing you, but she didn't use it."

"I bet she has other plans, that we're part of. Why else would she try to get us to join." Tai suggested. "But...what's been bothering me is...we were all together, all of you were passed out, and yet...she only ordered Piedmon to take me."

"Maybe you're more valuable to her plan than the rest of us." Sora suggested.

"Yea but-" Sora placed a finger on his lips to silence him.

"We'll figure this out, but maybe we're not supposed to know...yet. Who knows, after we get the Shards maybe things will get clearer."

"Let's hope, since everything keeps getting foggier and foggier each time we learn something new." Tai laughed.

For a while neither said anything, the only sounds were the crackling of the fire as it jumped through the air and the wisps of wind carrying the breathing of their fellow Sages. The elements seemed to be celebrating now that all the Sages were reunited. Sora had never seen the sky so lit up with dimond-like stars.

A strange feeling was bubbling inside her, a feeling she had never felt before. Tai had been her best friend for as long as she could remember, they did everything together. So why all of the sudden did her heartbeat begin to race when she got the chance to be with him without the others. Why did she feel like ripping off Mimi's head while she and Tai teased each other.

Mimi had told her she had had similar reactions when she, Sora, laughed and hung out with Matt. She said it was jealousy. So was what Sora felt jealousy? But it couldn't be, why would she be jealous if another girl got to close to Tai? Too many questions were buzzing around in her brain, and she shoved them to the back of her mind.

"It's getting late." she said reluctantly.

"Yea, we better get some sleep." Tai agreed. The pair walked towards the group and lay down for a well diserved rest.

A cracking twig stirred Matt from his slumber. It was early in the morning, right around dawn, and no one else was awake. The cracking nose came again and he was up in an instant. He looked around and saw Mimi standing a few feet from him, it looked like she was planning on sneaking off into the forest.

"Mimi?" he whispered. She placed a finger to her lips and motioned for him to follow. He glanced around the campsite, unsure if he should go or not, but Mimi had already disappeared into the thicket of branches.

He stood up slowly, so he wouldn't wake anyone else, then sprinted after Mimi. He squinted his eyes to adjust to the darkness as he listened to any sounds that would give away where Mimi was.

Some one tapped him on the shoulder and he jumped nearly 3 feet.

"It's me." a voice whispered.

When Matt recognized who was standing behind him he calmed his racing heart and turned to see Mimi standing in the dim light.

"What are you doing out here?" he whispered furiously. "And by yourself."

Mimi narrowed her eyes slightly. "I can take care of myself fine Matt. I have powers too you know."

"I never said you didn't." Matt added quickly, softening the tone of his voice, "But after what happened at the Dark Continent we should all be more careful."

Mimi spun on her heels and stormed away from him. Matt watched her backbefore rolling his eyes and persuing. He was practically running to keep up with her, but Mimi was determoined not to let him catch up with her.

"Mimi!" Matt panted. "Mimi why are you acting like this?"

Mimi haulted. "Okay." she sighed. "I want to prove to myself and the rest of you that I'm not just a spoiled princess. That I truely deserve to be a Sage and weild the power over Earth."

Matt was slightly taken back by this statement. "Mimi...of course you deserve them." Matt couldn't believe that Mimi felt undeserving or useless compared to the rest of them.

"Well I do." Mimi suddenly said.

"Do what?" Matt asked, bewildered.

"You said you couldn't believe I felt undeserving or useless compared to the rest of you, and I said I do." Mimi replied.

"But...I didn't say that out loud." Matt said.

"Yes you did. I can't read minds or anything." Mimi argued.

"Well-"

"Sshh!" Mimi hissed. "I heard something." she whispered. They began creeping through the forest, silent moving sillohettes in the darkness.

After walking for, what seemed like an hour, they had reached the edge of the wood. They crouched in the dense bushes, their eyes peering through. What lay beyond the forest was a small clearing, trees were arranged like a cresent moon, and the ocean lapped against the beach where the trees didn't grow. The grains of sand were dark grey, and the ocean looked like ghostly hands rising and falling, ready to grasp a victem and pull them into a final swim. At the end of the beach a large cave dwelled in silence. Water was drifting into the cave and a strange eerie mist hung around the entrance.

Mimi glanced at their surroundings, then cautiously stepped from their hiding place, ignoring Matt's protests.

She tentivly stepped on the grey sand and made her way to the entrance of the cave. The mist floated lazily around her as she peered into the obscure reaches of the cave. Matt ran to her side and peered in with her.

"Let's go." he said after a few moments. He grasped her arm, in an attempt to drag her away from the scene, but Mimi stayed firmly in place.

"Matt...there's something in there. Something calling me to it." she whispered.

"Meems, do you think it's your shard?" Matt asked.

"I don't-"

The ground began to shake violently. Mimi and Matt were thrown from their feet and lay sprawled on the ground.

The shaking ceased, but what caused the earth to move so violently had revealed it self as dozens of translucent hands reaching from the ground. Mimi let out a small cry of surprise while Matt was too dumbfounded to speak. Slowly the ghostly hands began to pull themselves from the ground, revealing the pale faces that had frozen in fright.

"Meems...are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Matt asked.

"Zombies!" Mimi shrieked. (A/N: lol, sry just had to make her say that )

They stood up in the blink of an eye, but the deceased had surrounded them.

A dark chuckle surrounded the clearing. "Hm..hm...and here I thought I was going to have to take you Sages one at a time. But you two have shown up at my very doorstep." Metal S. had slithered snake-like from the cave and now loomed before the frightened Sages.

The first thing that both Sages had noticed was the bright green gem hanging around his neck.

"Matt," Mimi whispered. "I'll create a diversion, but you have to get back to the others and tell them about this."

"Meems I can't-"

"This is no time to argue Matt." she hissed.

Matt was about to protest, but saw no point in it. Mimi was determined to prove herself, and he wasn't going to get in the way of that.

Mimi narrowed her eyes, which began to glow a bright green, and the trees surrounding the clearing sprang to life. The branches grew ten times in length and wrapped around the decaying figures, creating a path for Matt to run.

Matt ran through the temporary path. He glanced back at Mimi, but her eyes told him to continue running.

Relucatantly he left Mimi back at the mercy of Metal S. and the living dead.

"Where could they have gone?" Kari asked. While they slept, the ground began to shake violently causing everyone to wake up to the blinding sunrise coming over the treetops.

The first thing they had noticed was Matt and Mimi's vacancy, which instantly caused a small amount of panic.

"They could've gone for a morning walk." Tk suggested.

"Doubt it." Joe added.

"Me too," Tar agreed.

"Sorry Tk, but with the Dark Masters looking for us and everything that happened on the Dark Continent, that's pretty hard to believe." Sora said.

"Then we'll split up and try to find them, we'll meet back here after an hour." Tai said.

It was decided and they all split up in groups of 2 and went in different directions; Tai and Sora, Kari and Tk, Tar and Izzy, and Meg and Joe.

(A/N: I would write about what happens during their search, but it would be terribly dull, and I've decided to spare you the agony. So Tai, Sor, Tar, Kar, Tk, and Izzy are looking and bla bla bla)

Meg and Joe stumbled through the forest, looking high and low in search of their friends.

"Hey Joe, you don't think this is some pratical joke or something do you?" Meg asked.

"Why would you think that?" Joe asked.

"Well...there wasn't any sign of a struggle or anything, so I think they just got up and left." she replied.

Joe stopped and pondered this for a moment. "Now that you mention it there isn't any evidence that something happened to them anywhere near camp. So your idea could be right."

"If it is, I'm going to kill both of them for making us worry like this." she said chuckling.

"You're not the only one, I'll help and I'm positive Tai and Tar will." Joe added.

Suddenly the bushes ahead of them started to rustle, making both of them hault.

"What do you think it is?" Joe whispered.

"Only one was to find out." Meg replied. A swirling black mist poured from her hands and swirled around the bushes, uprooting them and revealing a very exhausted looking...

"Matt!" they both exclaimed. They rushed over to him.

"Matt...what happened to you?" Joe asked.

"Where's Mimi?" Meg added.

They slung his arms over their shoulders and began walking back to the campsite.

"Mimi...she said something about the trees telling her something was wrong in the forest...a cave...dead people...Metal S." Matt said, weakly.

"Metal S.!" Meg exclaimed.

"And you left her there?" Joe yelled.

"She told me to." he replied.

"And when's the last time you actually listened to someone when they give you directions." Joe asked.

Matt smirked at this. "Good point. But...Mimi's been feeling...unimportant. I thought that...maybe she needed a chance to prove herself."

Meg and Joe hadn't thought of that. Mimi never seemed like the one to think poorly of herself; she's pretty, smart (although slightly oblivious) , and has good fashion sense. In other words the picture of perfection (for some people anyway).

"Yea..." Joe started, finding a loss for words.

"But to leave her in the hands of one of the Dark Masters." Meg began.

"I know, I shouldn't have. But if I hadn't the rest of you would still be searching the forests while we were being killed." Matt replied.

"Speaking of the others, we'd better get back and tell them what's happened, then go find Mimi." Joe said. Matt and Meg nodded in agreement.

When the trio got back to camp they found only four of the eight Sages that were left when they split up.

"Hey, where's Tai and Sora." Meg asked after Matt had explained what had happened.

"Since you two didn't show up, they went looking for you." Kari said.

"But...we haven't heard from them since." Tk added.

"Do you think they ran into Metal S.?" Tar asked.

"Let's hope not," Izzy replied. "Scientifically, neither one would've stood a chance against him."

"Why?" Tk asked.

"All the elements have strengths and weaknesses, and three of them move in a cycle; water, fire, and ice. Water diminshes Fire, Fire melts Ice, and Ice freezes Water.

So if you think about it Fire and Wind won't cause damage to Water. Although a strong enough wind could control water, but our powers haven't evolved that far."

"Then we'd better find them." Kari announced. "which way did they go?"

Izzy tapped several keys on his laptop. "Sora told me they were going to search north of here." He pressed a couple buttons and a holographic image of Digitania appeared before them.

"Whoa...how'd you get that Izzy?" Tar asked.

"Genni uploaded it to my laptop, along with the locations of each Shard." Izzy replied. "Now north of our present location would be around here," he said, a blinking square formed around an area in the forest.

"At least it's not near Corpse Cove." Matt said, indicating the aqua blue dot on the hologram.

"So they could just be lost." Meg suggested.

_"Could._ That's the key word in that sentence." Joe added.

"Right. So we should still go and look for them." Tk said.

Izzy closed his laptop and the hologram disappeared.

So they began heading north, toward the mountains, and it wasn't long before they found evidence that someone had been there recently.

"Look," Matt pointed out. "footprints."

"Yea, but it looks like there's digimon prints following them." Tar observed.

They followed the tracks until reaching a cliff, where the prints had stopped.

"You don't think they fell off do you?" Kari asked.

Everyone glanced at one another before looking over the edge. In was an extreamely high cliff, the lake at the bottom looked like a mere puddle.

"What worries me, is that Tai and Sora's prints don't show that they turned around, but neither does the digimon's." Joe said, examining the ground.

"So you think they all jumped off?" Tk asked.

"Who knows, all I'm saying is-" he was cut off by an immensly powerful wind blowling at them from behind. It was so strong that all of them shielded their eyes and fell to the ground, literally being swept oof their feet. (lol) It wasn't long before they felt themselves being blown over the side of the cliff.

Tar felt her feet being dragged over the edge, and she desprately grasped the side of the cliff, but the wind was too strong. Her fingertips slipped from the rock and she and the other Sages were hurdling toward the lake.

They all braced themselves for impact, but instead of landing splattered all over the ground, they landed on something springy that broke their fall almost instantly.

When the Sages dared to open their eyes they found themselves staring through the holes of a net.

A net that had been so cleverly camoflauged it hadn't been visable from the top of the cliff.

"Whoa...let's not do that again." Tk said, half laughing.

As everyone sat up and looked around they saw, to their surprise, a cave lit by numberous torches that gave it a cheery glow.

Different symbols lined the walls and each one seemed to look familiar to one of the Sages.

They rolled off the giant net and walked into the cozy cave.

"Where are we?" Matt asked.

"You are in the Gotsumon underground city." an old, but wise voice answered. They Sages spun around to find themselves looking at a Gotsumon leaning on a walking stick. "Now that I have answered your question it is your turn to answer one; who are you?"

"Umm...we're travellers, and we lost a few of our friends, we think they fell down here too." Kari replied.

"Then you, too, are Sages." he said.

"Yes." Izzy replied after a moments hesitation.

"Please follow me." the elder Gotsumon said. The Sages felt they had no choice but to obey.

They walked in silence for a while before the Gotsumon began to speak. "I am the elder of the Gotsumon village, I help as often as I can. But we have encountered a rather large problem that I and the rest of my clan cannot solve by ourselves.

"I am sure at least a few of you have seen the evil within a cave on a forgotten cove."

All eyes rested on Matt for a moment. "Yes." he said.

"Well, we have lived in peace with Corpse Cove for many centuraries. We have kept away from the land of the deceased, and they have left our people alone to build within the walls of this mountain. But a new evil recently moved into the cave."

"Metal S." Kari said.

"Metal S. has been exploring our tunnel system which runs from here to the eastern valley on the edge of what was Windy Glen. He has discovered a tunnel we abandoned years ago that led from Corpse Cove to our city."

"Let me guess, he's been terrorizing your city and destroying everything." Meg asked.

"Correct. He has also been kidnapping many civilians to work in the tunnels so he can travel wherever he pleases without hassel."

"That's unethical." Izzy said.

"It truely is. But earlier today, two children had fallen into our nets and unintentionally wandered into our city. We had assumed they were enimies sent by Metal S. to cause more havoc. But one of them could control the winds that blow through the air shafts and the other held fire in his hands."

"That's Tai and Sora." Tar said excitedly.

"I thought those two would be your friends." the Gotusmon said chuckling. "And when we saw that they could control an element we knew that the prophecy had begun and we welcomed them to our city.

"We then told them of our problem, knowing that the Ten Sages of Destiny's duty was to help those in desprate need of saving from evil. And they told us that they had recovered all ten Sages, and would be glad to help."

"Of course we would," Tk said cheerfully.

The Gotsumon chuckled and looked at the children fondly. " I have one more question for you. If all ten Sages have been found, why have I only counted nine?"

"That's why we split up in the first place." Meg started.

"Our friend Mimi, who is the missing Sage, and Matt over here disappeared this morning, and we split up to find them. And it turns out Mimi has been captured by Metal S." Joe explained.

The Gatsumon shook his head. "A grave thing to happen to a Chosen One."

When their conversation had ended they had arrived at the mouth of a very large cavern. Buildings made entirely of rock piled around the ground, and Gatsumon of all sizes walked among the buildings, although for a city this big you would've expected a much bigger population than what they were seeing.

"Follow me and I will show you to your friends." the elderly Gatsumon said, as he walked through the stone city.

They followed behind him, admiring all the work these Gatsumon had done to create a seperate civilization from above ground.

But as their walk continued they noticed more and more piles of giant rocks scattered all over the ground. Evidence that Metal S. had been causing destruction wherever he went.

At last they reached a rock-made colosseum in the very center of the city. The Gatsumon walked through the archway and into a vast open room that had several more archways leading to other rooms.

"Your friends should be through the third door on the right." the Gatsumon said.

They thanked him and rushed to meet them.

They walked through the archway to find Sora and Tai with their backs to them, examining the wall.

"I'm telling you, there's something weird about this wall." Tai said.

"Come on Tai, there's no way that symbol was glowing." Sora argued.

"That's what I saw. This teardrop one was glowing bright green just a second ago." Tai persued.

Tar cleared her throat impatiently and they spun around. The first things the Sages noticed when Tai and Sora turned was that Sora had her arm in a sling, and it looked swollen and had multicolored bruses lining it, and Tai's forehead had a bandage around it.

"Guys!" they said excitedly. They immediately rushed over and everyone began talking at once.

"What happened to you two?"

"How'd you get down here?"

"Mimi's been captured by Metal S."

"Metal S. is keeping her hostage at Corpse Cove."

While their friends continued to shout out their worries and what they missed, Tai and Sora glanced at one another in utter confusion.

Sora placed two fingers in her mouth and whistled loud enough that everyone stopped talking. "Okay...now, we'll explain what happened if you tell us what we've missed." she said calmly.

Everyone nodded their heads in reply.

"Well, your first question is simple, we had a rough fall from the strong wind on top of the cliff; Sora was slammed into the cliff side on her arm, fracturing it, and I got a few cuts on my head when I was thrown backwards. No big deal, Sora's arm will heal in a week or two and I'll be okay in a few days." Tai explained.

"And what's this about Mimi?" Sora asked. "Did you find her?"

"She was taken captive by Metal S." Kari replied quietly. Kari watched how Tai and Sora's face suddenly looked crest-fallen, and wondered if their own faces mirrored that saddness.

There was period where no one talked aloud, but they all knew what the others were thinking. It was from that bond they all shared, a strong one. Sure, they were as different as night and day, but they had all grown close in the few weeks they had spent with one another. And to lose one member of their group was like losing a member of a family. Which is what they were; an odd family.

"So, we know what we have to do right." Tai half said, half asked. "We've got to use the tunnel Metal S. created and save Mimi and the Gatsumon, then stop Metal S. once and for all."

Tar grinned, then placed her hand in the center of the ring they had formed. Sora placed her's on top with a smile. Tai put his on her's with determination in his eyes. Matt joined, his blue eyes steely and ready for anything. Izzy too joined, that wisdom he carried with him shown like sparks in his eyes. Joe's calm, go-with-the-flow aura had dimmed and in it's place was a daring look as he placed his hand in the ring. Meg, who was least known in the group, had an adverterous gleam worthy of Tai flickering through her green eyes as she put her hand on Joe's. And Tk and Kari placed their hands on her's at the same time and they grinned.

"Whatch out Metal S., you can't take one of us without getting a fight with the rest of us." Meg said smirking.

It didn't take long for the Sages to begin their journey deeper into the mountain. They explained their plan to the elder Gatsumon and he lead them to a desserted part of the underground city.

The lighting was dim and everything was in ruins. He grabbed a torch and lead them further still through the darkness. By the time he finally stopped Tai, Tk, and Kari had created more light so the wall two feet in front of them was visable.

"This is where I leave you children." the elder announced. "I wish I could go with you through the tunnel, but I would be of little assistance, these rocks just arn't what they used to be." he said chuckling.

"Thanks for taking us this far Elder." Matt siad.

"When we come back all your captured civilians will be free." Izzy assured.

"I can't thank you children enough, but I believe I have some information that may help you." the Elder motioned for them to move closer. "I'm sure you know of the Ten Shards of Unity. Well, one of them is within Corpse Cove, and the location is where the dead had their final desires. It's a riddle I myself have never figured out, but perhaps you'll have better luck with it."

"Thanks Elder. For everything." Kari said sweetly.

The Elder nodded his head. "Good luck Sages."

The Sages all stepped into the archway, and they were immediatly surrounded by a cold, damp wind. It was eerily silent, only water dropping from stalactites echoed off the cave walls. Each Sage was afraid to talk, afraid to give themselves away, but at the same time they were afraid not to talk, one could easily be seperated inf they didn't keep in contact with one another.

"I think we should hold hands, just in case we get seperated." Sora whispered. They all agreed on that notion and everyone grabbed the person's hand closest to them.

They walked on and on, for what could've been days, since there wasn't any sunlight it was impossible to tell how much time had passed.

They were still walking when Kari rushed up to the front of the line and listened.

"I heard someone scream." she whispered to the group.

They quickened their pace until, in the darkness and the gloom, a glittering gold light danced on the cave walls up ahead.

"What do you think that is?" Joe asked.

"With a golden glow like that, I'd say it has to be something big and valuable." Izzy replied.

The proceeded slowly and pressed themselves against the walls as they all peered into the room.

What they saw shocked them so much that they stood in the doorway for at least 5 minutes just looking into the huge cavern.

Gold. Golden coins, crowns, scepters, jewlery, almost anything you could imagine was stored in a giant cavern, like a treasure trove.

"Guys!" a shrill voice cried, knocking them back to their senses. They turned their heads to see Mimi tied to a giant stalagmite, and beside that was a cage built into the rock where anxious eyes of a large group of Gatsumon gazed through the bars at the new-commers.

Matt and Izzy rushed to untie Mimi while Tai and Tar ran over to free the Gatsumon.

Matt easily froze the golden rope that had bound Mimi's arms and she pulled and it shattered all over the floor. She gave Matt and Izzy a quick hug that made them both blush slightly.

Tai melted the bars and the Gatsumon cheered as they escaped their prision.

"Come on, let's get out of here." Joe said.

"Wait. My Shard." Mimi cried. She pointed to the top of the immense pile of treasure, and, sure enough, hovering above a green pedestal was a light green crystal that glimmered like dew covered leaves.

"The Elder's riddle." Sora murmered to herself. "What the dead desired before they died. This treasure."

"What I want to know is...how did they die?" Matt asked.

Meg walked over to the treasure and examined it. "This treasure has a curse upon it." she said. "One touch, and your life is sucked out of you."

"How do you know that?" Tk asked.

"Why else would every piece still be here, and it explains why there are so many dead people." she explained. "Plus, it fits the riddle."

"She's right." Tai agreed.

Joe walked over to the pile of gold before him. "So...this is how my brother died. He saw the gold, probably tried to take some back to the village, and when he touched it...his life was sucked out of him."

There was a long silence. "I'm sorry Joe." Kari said, placing a hand on Joe's shoulder.

Joe sniffed through his nose several times. "So, how do we get it?"

"My arm's fractured, so I can't help." Sora said miserably.

"I doubt most of us would be much help either." Tar added.

Mimi was looking at her shard with intensity. "Matt, do you think you could create a path over the gold made out of ice?"

"Yea, I think so." he said, looking at the distance from where they stood to the Shard.

"Well, I've got an idea." Mimi said cheerfully.

A glassy path sloped to the Shard. Mimi stood at the base of the ice, an bunch of intertwined vines in each hand, the other side tied to the pedestal.

She took a deep breath before stepping on the ice, where she nearly slipped.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Matt asked.

"Positive." Mimi replied stubbornly. She tightened her grip on the vines and began to make a slow but careful way up the slope.

All eyes were on her, so no one noticed the glowing blue eyes coming from the back of the cave.

"RIVER OF POWER!" Coins flew every which way, nearly all of them aimed at Mimi, but she lost her footing and landed on the ice on her stomache just as the coins flew above her head. She pulled herself up and looked at the ground. Her friends had started firing all their attacks on Metal S. and the Gatsumon were helping as much as they could.

"Meems, keep climbing." Tai yelled over the noise. Mimi nodded and proceeded climbing up the steep path.

"Do you puney Sages really think you can stop me?" Metal S. asked smirking. He slammed Tar and Meg into the wall with his tail. "RIVER OF POWER!" water showered over Izzy and Tai, nearly drowning them, and shorting out both their powers. Sora, who couldn't really do anything because of her arm rushed to help Tar and Meg while Matt, Joe, Tk, and Kari did all they could to hold off Metal S.

Mimi was 3/4 of the way up when she saw Tk and Kari freeze in their tracks when Metal S. used his "GIGA ICE BLAST!" on them. She sped up, knowing that she had to reach her Shard before Matt and Joe fell too.

"ENERGY BLAST!" he yelled. Fire sped towards the two remaining Sages. Joe raised his arms and water sprayed from his hands causing steam to flail around him, but no damage was taken, but Matt was burnt and thrown backwards.

"GIGA ICE BLAST!" Metal S. yelled, and Joe had frozen too, but at that moment Mimi had grasped her Shard.

A beautiful bright green light filled the room, blinding everyone in it's radiance. Metal S. screeched in pain and disbelief.

When the glow disappeared the Sages stood on their feet, re-energized and ready for battle, but they stood aside as Mimi slid down the icey slope. She was covered in a bright green glow, although her eyes were a darker green.

She walked towards Metal S. her glowing green hair blowing around her. She raised her arms and the same color glow formed around Metal S. He was slowly lifted into the air, the whole time exclaiming in disbelief. Mimi swung her arms to her right and Metal S. crashed into the cursed treasure.

He gave one last scream of pain before he dessinegrated. "I'll be back Sages!"

The glow slowly faded from Mimi and she collapsed, luckily Matt was there to catch her before she fell. She opened her eyes slowly.

"Told you I could do it." she said smiling. She shut her eyes and passed out from exhaustion.

When Mimi awoke she realized she was no where she had ever been before. She jumped up, but saw all her friends crowded around her, most of them sleeping.

The events in Corpse Cove came flooding back to her and she looked at her Elemental Crest; light green leaves had been etched into the golden ring and in light and dark green letters spelled the word Earth. Also a golden necklace with a polished glass surface with a light green square with a teardrop on it showing through it hung around her neck.

"The Crest of Sincerity." the words just seemed to come to her. As she gazed around the room she saw the same teardrop symbol glowing light green, while other symbols covered the walls.

She looked at all her friends who looked worn out, so she decided to let them sleep, and who knows, maybe they could spend a day or two here before going back to their quest. After all, they deserved it.

Mimi layed back on her pillow, but before drifting off to sleep she heard words in her head_, Mimi, Sage of Earth, Bearer of Sincerity, Gifted with Telekinesis, Truely deserving of the title. _

me: YaY! soooo...how'd u like it? I wanted to do something with Mimi for this chapt. since I really like her, and I haven't done much with her since she was discovered as a Sage. So...R&R! In honor of Valentines Day, I bought all my NICE reviewers cupcakes and cookies and chocolate! CAN'T WAIT TO HEAR FROM YOU! HAPPY V-DAY!

_**iamkagomeiluvinuyasha**: GREAT REVIEW! lol, u think readin it backwards gave you a headache, try writin it, lol. WEEE! sry, valentines day, so i'm kinda hyper on sugar! YOU ROCK! seriously, you rock more Hope u liked the chapt! LATERZ!_

_**cartoon-watcher-4-Eva**: Thanx soooooooooo much! That's sooooooo nice . Sry, kinda hyper on chocolate . Hope u liked this chapt. U ROCK!_

_**Rayana Wolfer**: YaY! You've read my other story that many times! U're TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY AWESOME! And yea, the other one was a flashback so I had to make it kinda deja vu ish, lol. And I'm soooooo glad u liked it . And thanx a WHOLE BUNCH! for helpin me out with the names of the places, I had a total brain meltdown, and couldn't think of anything. BUT U SAVED ME! YaY! THATX FOR THE REVIEW! U ROCK SO MUCH THAT I CAN'T DESCRIBE IT! _

_**Priestess kurumi inu's sister: **YAY! I LUV UR WORDS! lol. Glad u like it so much . U're sooooo nice! U're WONDERFUL! AMAZIN! AND ALL THAT!_

_**Sari Kamiya01 - Mika Takaishi01: **Thanx sooooo much for bein so nice about me, accidently, taking your charater. I guess I've read so many of ur stories that I figured she was real, lol. And on my last chapt. I was in a rush to get through that scene that i used the first name that popped into my head which was the name u used for...hmm...My Immortal, i think. AND THANX SOOOOOO MUCH FOR THE REVIEW! Commin from an awesome author like u means a lot . YaY! LATERZ!_

_**star**: lol, YaY! I HAVE A FAN THAT LIKES THE STORY SOOOOO MUCH SHE'LL CRY WHEN IT'S OVER! Not very many people can say that . (and I'm sure not a lot of people can say it in one breath while screamin, lol) YaY! GLAD U LIKED ALL THE STUFF I ADDED! and I had to have a little Taiora fluff in there somewhere. Awww...I'm ur fav digimon author! THAT'S SOOOOOOOO AWESOME! And, since It's Valentine's Day, I got u a huge bag of sugary goodness (chocolates, candy, etc.) smiles innocently...too innocently and Meg suspicious...nah. lol. THANX FOR THE REVIEW! U TOTALLY ROCK! C-ya!_

_**YamiTai**: lol, what's with all the sighing, lol. Yep Yep, I read Meg's name backwards...GEM! MUWHAHAHAHAHAAHA! it's her name in digitanian, so HA! lol, j/k. and i'm not tellin no one what i gots in store for our heros , (mainly cuz I got no clue myself). Glad u liked it! U ROCK!_

_**MattxLuver**: Glad u liked it . Made it long cuz i had soooooooooo much to say, lol. GREAT REVIEW! U ROCK!_


	10. Labyrinth of Illusions

me: Hi everyone I just -

**!WE INTERRUPT THIS STORY YOU'RE ABOUT TO READ FOR THIS BREAKING NEWS BULLITEN!**

AHHHH! KILLER BUTTERFLIES AND MUTANT SQUIRRELS ARE TRYING TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD USING THE POWER OF ACORNS! AHHHH! WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!

back to me: hahahahahahaha, APRIL FOOLS!

my imaginary twin brother who lives in my closet: But April Fools was three days ago.

me: growls so. I just HAD to get that out of my system

Tally ho!

And onward with the fic!

"We can never truely thank you enough Sages." the elder Gatsumon said as he shook Tai's hand.

"Thank Mimi, she's the one that saved you guys." Tai replied, motioning to the Sage of Earth.

The elder Gatusumon gave her a warm smile and clapsed his hand in her's. "It has truely been a blessing to meet you Mimi, and on behalf of the entire clan, I thank you."

Mimi blushed a light pink. "Thanks, but I was just doing what anyone else would've done."

The elder grinned at her modesty. "You are all welcome here anytime. Please come back to visit us."

"We will." Kari assured.

"Are you certain you must leave today?" he asked.

"We're afraid so." Tar replied.

"Now that Metal S. has been destroyed the rest of the Dark Masters will be looking for us, and we don't want to put your people in any more danger." Sora added, she still wore the sling around her arm from the fall off the cliff.

"I understand. These two will escort you to the surface." he nodded to two younger Gatsumon.

"Thanks Elder." Tk said, gratefully.

With a final farewell to the rock city the Sages walked through an arched tunnel, waving to the crowd that had gathered behind them until they were out of sight.

None really wanted to go back to the surface. Sure they missed actual sunlight, but down in the tunnels everything was peaceful, or at least it has been for three days. And who was to thank for saving these peace-loving digimon, the Gatsumon. None other than Mimi.

She fiddled with the new addition hanging around her neck. A bright green square with a teardrop symbol in the middle, hanging in a brass tag with a clear screen. She said it's what her Shard had turned into when she infused with it. Something called a Crest.

"So what do you think these crests mean?" Matt asked.

"All I know is that mine is the Crest of Sincerity, or at least that's what someone told me." she replied.

"And how do you know this exactly?" Izzy asked.

"I...don't know, to tell you the truth. I just...heard it. Like someone talking in my head." Mimi said.

This caught Tai's attention instantly. Having someone talk in your head could be dangerous, he knew from experience.

"Could you tell what the voice was like?" he asked.

Mimi gave him a confused look.

"Like, was it an evil voice?" Tk asked.

Mimi thought about it for a second. "It didn't sound evil. It said something about me being a Sage, the Crest of Sincerity, and gifted with telekinesis, or something like that, then it said I was truely deserving of the title."

"Well, that doesn't sound bad. Who knows, it might be Genni or one of your parents." Meg added.

Everyone seemd slightly convinced.

"In fact Sincerity was one of the traits Genni told us about in the legend. So Mimi's explanation is possible." Izzy said as he thought about it for a moment.

The Gatsumon guides came to a hault. "The end of the passage is at the end of this tunnel." One of them said.

"It should lead you straight to the surface," the other replied.

"Thanks." Tar said. They nodded and rushed off in the opposite direction.

"So...where should we go from here?" Joe asked. He was just grateful the experience with Corpse Cove was over, and he was ready to start the next deadly adventure (A/N: Whoa...Joe was ready for a deadly adventure! Somebody pinch me! I must be dreaming!).

Izzy opened his laptop and typed several keys, a holographic image of Digitania appeared before them.

Izzy tapped the keyboard and seven dots of different colors began blinking on the hologram.

"We're right here, in the center of Mt. Infinity." he said pointing to a blue dot. "Now the closest place from here is the Labyrinth of Illusions." he continued, pointing to the yellow dot in the center of the desert region.

"So we should go there next." Tai said.

"Well..." Mimi started.

"Well what?" Tar asked.

"I heard that the way to get there is trecherous. Full of trickster digimon and humans and there's no water for miles. Plus it's hot, very hot." Mimi said.

"Hmm...according to the program there's a town that's east from here that lies between us and our destination." Izzy calculated.

"We could stop there before going through the desert and gather supplies we might need." Sora suggested.

"Oooh and maybe get some shopping done." Mimi squealed.

"I was waiting for her to say that." Tar whispered to Tai. They both laughed silently.

"Hey look, the end of the tunnel." Kari said as she pointed to a small glow up ahead.

"Thank the goddess, I never thought I'd miss sunlight and fresh air as much as I did." Tk added.

"Same here." Meg agreed.

They reached the end of the tunnel and were greeted with the blinding rays of the sun and the cool wind swirling around them.

"Wow. I didn't notice how beautiful the view was." Sora said in awe. They stood on a ledge overlooking miles of Digitania. From the forests to the Glacier to the ocean, and off to the east a large desert that covered nearly a fourth of Digitania loomed in wait for them.

"Falling from the top of a mountain might take some of the enjoyment out of seeing the surroundings." Joe replied.

"Good point." Matt said.

"Okay...I just have one question...how do we get down from here?" Tar asked.

Everyone exhanged a quick glance, waiting for someone to come up with something. Sora's arm was still weak, so that was out, and Mimi wasn't in complete control of her new awakened power, at the moment it was too powerful for her to control without crumbling a mountain.

A cheerful tune suddenly caught Matt's delicate ear for music.

"What's that?" he asked looking towards the horizon. With the new silence around the group it was easier to pick up to alluring melody. At times it sounded like a bird call, or the wind, tired of its single one-note whistle, conducting a symphony within nature's bounds.

"Beautiful." Meg murmmered as she closed her eyes to listen to it more carefully.

"It's coming from over there." Kari motioned, pointing to the edge of the cliff. And sure enough, a few moments later two small figures were seen hovering toward them. As they came into view it was obvious they were neither human, nor digimon.

"Pixies." Mimi said, there was a slight note of awe in her voice.

"Pixies!" everyone exclaimed.

"I thought they were only a myth." Tai stated.

Mimi shook her head. "No. There is - was a creek that flowed through Earth Kingdom. It was the magic from that spring that kept Earth Kingdom green year round. Pixies were said to inhabit the woods where the spring flowed from."

"Fascinating." Izzy said.

While Mimi was explaining to the group about the wonderous Pixies, the two had gotten closer and were now upon them.

One was bright green and had wings that looked like perfect emerald maple leaves. She had long straight pink hair that looked almost like the petals of a rose.

The other was blue and had bright orange monarch butterfly wings. Her hair glitterd like the ocean and had dew speckled through her curls.

"**Well lookee here Piff**." the blue one giggled.

"**I see 'em Paff**." the green one replied. (just so u know, these two have freaky laughs )

"**I thought I sensed a coupla ruddy human stiffs**." Paff giggled.

"**This'll be good for a laugh**." Piff added.

"Uhh...who are you?" Sora asked.

"**The name's Piff and Paff**." Piff said.

"**The leaders of the Forest god's staff**." Paff added.

"There's a forest god!" Joe asked.

"**Why of course, stretching from the great mountains to the vast sand**."

"**But only four live on this land**."

**"Azulongmon, Gardian of Hope and Light**."

"**Zhuqiaomon, God of the Winds and Fire's might**."

"**Ebonwumon, Protector of the soothing Water and Earth's spice."**

**"Baihumon, Deity of the sparks of Electricity and the glistening Ice**."

"**And Nerrezamon, Master of Shadows and Darkness**." _(A/N: okay, just so you know, I didn't see all of the third season when it introduced all these characters, most of it, but not all. So i don't have the exact personalities and traits of the sovereigns, so i based their elements on my own views and stuff like that , so if i do something u think i should change, TELL ME! Oh and Nerrezamon is my own sovereign, and Nerreza means darkness in Italian, and she's Azulongmon's sister since darkness and light are kin)_

"Whoa," Tai muttered.

"Yea, I didn't think that Gods exsisted on Digitania anymore either." Izzy replied.

"No not that, I didn't think anyone could rhyme that long." Tai stated.

"**So what're you lot doing around here?"** Piff demanded.

**"A place like this isn't to be trespassed by mortals mere."** Paff added

""Should we tell them?" Meg whispered to Tai.

"I don't think we have much choice." he replied, also in a soft whisper.

"Maybe, we shouldn't. We don't know anything about this God, for all we know he might not be as trustworthy as we think." Matt disagreed.

Tai's eyes met his. Firey vs. Icey. "Yea, but this could be a once in a lifetime chance to figure out more about the crests, and this Ebonwumon might know something about the Labrynith of Illusions."

"You both have a point Matt, but Tai we should think this through..." Joe started to say, but neither seemed to be listening.

While the Sages were having their own whispered conversation, the pixies were too.

**"You can't be serious Paff. These humans... the Sages! Don't make me laugh." **Piff stated.

"**I'm telling you what I heard. The Sages were last spotted around here, so says a bird." **Paff retorted.

"**Well if you are right, which I highly doubt you are, Ebonwumon must see them, they appear to have travelled far."**

**"He will be most interested to meet the Forest's Lady and Lord. If they truely are mystics then they will be welcomed with celebrations and more."**

**"Follow me and be quick about it, otherwise they'll be gone in a bit."**

The two fluttered over to the group, it seemed as though two of the childeren were haveing a rather loud disagreement.

Piff cleared her throught, but no one took notice. She tried again, but she remained ignored. Paff stuck two fingers in her mouth and produced a loud whistle that stopped all the Sages from bickering.

**"Gee thanks Sis**." Piff rolled her eyes. **"Anyway, before our conversation went amiss."**

**"We wanted to ask you a question most dear..."**

**"Who are you strangers, and please do not fear."**

**"For Pixies we are, but none are more fair..."**

**"Than the two before you, the natural pair."**

**"We have a hunch that you are the ones.."**

**"Who we hear about more with each coming sun."**

**"Are you all the fabeled Ten Sages of Lore?"**

**"The ones we've been hearing about for hundreds of years before?"**

Tar chanced a quick glance around the area and to each of her friends' faces. _The Pixies already figured out who we are, and they didn't attack or try to kill us. So perhaps it would be alright if we tell them _Tar figured.

"Yes. Yes we are the Ten Sages." she announced.Everyone's heads turned to look at her, some seemed unaffected while some nodded their approval and some glared at her since the matter was still under debate. But Tar shrugged off the meaningless looks.

**"Then all of you are here, since I count all ten."**

**"This could bring our searching for the Forest's Lord and Lady to an end."**

"The Forest's Lord and Lady?" Sora asked.

"**The ones you call the Sages of Water and Earth." **the two said in unsion.

Without even thinking everyone instinctivly turned to Mimi and Joe.

"Who? Us?" Joe stuttered.

The Pixies bowed gracefully in their direction. "**Oh** **Creaters of the forest we welcome you here with an elegant bow."**

**"And we must take you to Ebonwumon now."**

They motioned for the group to follow them as they flew over the edge.

"Wait! How are we supposed to get down?" Kari yelled.

The Pixies haulted.

**"You have magic do you not."**

**"Or perhaps you arn't the ones who we have sought." **

They eyed them suspiciously.

"Our magic isn't as strong as it was a week ago. We just freed Corpse Cove of Metal S. and the journey has -" Tk started.

"**Corpse Cove!" **They exclaimed.

**"That place is nothing more than a dark place of screams."**

**"We're certain it has plagued many people in their dreams."**

**"We have heard it's terror has been put to a rest."**

**"But it's hard to imagine a place like that is truely no longer messed."**

The two Pixies held their palms over the edge and small buds began to sprout in the rock. They grew magically until they formed a carpet-like path of grasses, weeds, and flowers that began spiralling down through thin air.

"Do they honestly think that this can support us all! It's scientifically impossible!" Izzy exclaimed.

Meg tentivly placed one foot on the rapidly growing path. It seemed pretty sturdy.

"Maybe if we go two or three at a time." she suggested.

"Alright. Kari, Sora, and Tk, you three go first. Sora since one of your arms is practically useless right now you'll have the best chance of making it down safely with them, and even if any of you fall you'll have that force-field thing to protect you." Tai instructed. "Izzy and Mimi, you two after them, Meg, Matt, and Joe you next, and me and Tar will go last."

When there were no objections Kari, Tk, and Sora began to inch their way down the path, that was VERY narrow.

Tai pulled out his trusty mini-telescope and when they were far enough down, Tar signaled for the next group to go.

Everything went smoothly until Meg, Matt and Joe went. They had gone about half way down the winding nature staircase when Joe's foot was sucked through a gap in the weeds.

"AHH!" he cried.

Meg spun around to see Joe's foot swallowed up to his knee. "Are you alright?" she asked, kneeling to help him.

"Yea, but ...I'm...stuck." he grunted from effort.

Meg examined how the weeds and plants seemed to be alive, and realized they were squeezing his leg to keep it in place. They'd have to cut the grass around him, but that could cause the magic in these plants to be disrupted and the whole thing could collapse. Even using Matt's power on the weeds could be risky.

"Matt!" she yelled. He had allowed them to get a slight headstart to avoid a predickiment like this.

"What happened?" he asked, keeping a fair distance away, just as a precaution.

"He's stuck, I can't get him out. And we'll have to cut the plants binding him or saw his leg off." she replied, smirking at how pale Joe got when she mentioned the second option.(A/N: she's kidding, duhh..., lol)

Matt cautiosly advanced toward them. "If Mimi were here do you think she's be able to help?"

Meg thought about it for a second. "No, since there's already magic working within it Mimi's magic could just make things worse."

"Uhh...could we speed this up a little. These plants are beginning to cut off the circulation to my foot and that could cause -" Joe started.

"Alright Joe we'll hurry." Meg interrupted to save them from another medical explanation.

"Are you guys okay?"

The three of them looked up and saw Tar and Tai above them looking over the edge of the path.

"Joe's stuck!" Matt yelled back.

"Hold on, we'll be down in a sec." Tar called.

"Be careful, we don't know how much weight this thing can take." Joe said.

The twins nodded and continued downward.

"There's something about those Pixies that I don't like." Tar thought aloud.

"Me neither. You'd think they would've found a better way for us to get down than this." Tai agreed.

Something suddenly caught both their attentions and they looked up. It looked like something was flying towards them with alarming speed.

"What do you think it is?" Tar asked.

"I don't know, but let's help Joe and the others and get down before we find out." Tai said.

They quickened their pace and were almost running the remainder of the way.

They stopped a few meters away from the sight.

"Tar you go, your magic will be more use than mine will." Tai said.

She nodded and rushed to the scene.

"Are you okay Joe?" she asked as she knelt besid ehim.

"Oh yea, this is the best day ever." he replied sarcastically.

Tar ignored him and inspected the damage.

"These plants shouldn't be holding your leg this tightly." she theorized. "It's almost like..."

"It's a trap." Meg finished.

Tar immediately turned to the speck coming towards them. But it was much closer, and Tar could determine several of it's features. It was a digimon, that was for sure, but she couldn't tell what kind.

"That can't be good." she murmered.

Meg chanced a look at whatever Tar was looking at. "We'll have to risk breaking the magic. If we don't we're all done for."

She placed her hands on either side of Joe's leg and her red aura formed around her. "Wait. Just in case, maybe the rest of you should get a headstart." she said.

"Ri -" Matt started to say, but at that very moment the entire nature path in mid-air collapsed beneath their feet.

Everyone was free falling out of the sky to meet their eminent doom. Arms raised and eyes shut tight against the prevailing winds, they braced themselves for impact. But instead, their falling slowed and they weren't met with the bone smashing blow they expected.

Meg opened her eyes about half way, expecting to see the ground rushing towards her, but she was frozen in place, although nothing supported her.

She looked around, her red hair was blowing around her carelessly, the other Sages were also looking around perplexed.

"This day just keeps getting weirder and weirder." Matt grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What a ride." Tai laughed.

"Don't expect me to go on it again." Meg stated.

"Does anyone else find it weird that WE'RE SUSPENDING IN MID-AIR!" Joe exclaimed.

"Sheesh relax Joe, at least we're not about to crash into the ground." Tar rolled her eyes.

"I have a slight fear of heights." he said quietly.

Mad giggling stopped their converstation as the Pixies came back into view.

**"You humans have provided us with the biggest laugh we've had in years."**

**"Our enjoyment is truely your fears."**

**"But alright, we've had our fun."**

**"The time for you to see Ebonwumon has now begun."**

The group landed with a "THUMP" when the Pixies magic subsided.

"Are you guys okay?" Mimi asked.

"Yea we were wondering what was taking you." Tk said as he offered a hand to his brother.

"We had a bit of a problem involving Joe's leg and a spot of weak magic." Meg replied.

"Wait, who was the figure who was coming towards us up there?" Tar asked.

"**Oh that. That was just a vision from an experience you've had." **

**"We knew by your faces it must have been bad." **

The Sages glared at them until they spoke again.

**"Come, Ebonwumon waits."**

**"Only he can determine your fates."**

The two flew silently through a thick grove of trees with the Sages in persuit.

They walked for hours, but the further they ventured the more the sceanery changed. It was much greener and everything was in bloom, it was truely a marvellous thing to behold.

They were certain they had entered a sacred area when they saw all the creatures thought to be myth prancing through the forests as if the world were their oyster. Pixies, Fairies, Unicorns (A/N: All the fluffy cuteness stuff you'd expect to see in an enchanted forest...bleech!)

"Oooh...this place is beautiful." Mimi swooned. "My magic has never felt this strong before."

"Mine neither." Joe added

They stopped where two trees curved to form an entrance. Beyond the entrance was a large open area with forest on all sides. In the center of the clearing was a hill with a bunch of trees on it.

The Pixies giggled again and flew back into the forest.

"Sooo...I guess we're supposed to go through there to meet this forest god." Tai said.

"Hmm...I'm curious to know how these 5 Gods have managed to live without detection for so many years." Izzy thought aloud.

"Yea, and the Dark Masters must not know about them either, otherwise they'd be searching for them too." Sora said.

(A/N: okay, again, All i really know about Ebonwumon is that he's Irish, he's the gardian of the north, and what he looks like. So if what I make him say sucks...just deal with it)

"**Well I certainly hope not. Otherwise we'll all be in a wee speck of trouble." **

The Sages looked around for the owner of the voice, but nothing moved.

"**Well don't just stand there in the doorway like a sales-person. Come in."**

The group glanced at each other, but did as the voice instructed.

"Ummm...are you Ebonwumon?" Tar asked.

**"Who do you think you've been talking to lass?"**

Suddenly the hill in the center of the clearing started to move. Legs were revaled and not one, but two heads! It was a two-headed turtle with a bunch of trees on his back!

Ebonwumon turned his giant heads to look at their shocked faces**. "What? You never seen a giant two headed talking turtle before**?" he laughed. **"No I guess that's a pretty dumb question. So you're the Sages I've been hearing so much about. You're the spitting images of your great grand dads and mums."**

"Uhh...sorry, but who do we look like?" Matt asked, confusion written all over his face.

**"Why your great great great great great great great, now was it six or seven...I can never remember, but the point is that you look just like your grandparents, the origional bearers of your crests and the weilders of the elements. Surely Genni told you bout them."**

"You mean the Goddess's children?" Izzy asked.

**"Why yes o' course. "**

"Umm...I don't want to seem rude sir, but how did you know Genni contacted us?" Tai asked.

Ebonwumon gave a rather loud chuckle. **"I suppose you all have every right to be skeptical of me. But Genni and me...we've been friends for years, plus nothing happens in this forest that I don't know about. And Genni's house happens to be at the intersection of where all of our powers collide.**

**But I'd better quit dwelling on the past and tell you about it. I have a lot of information to give you before you continue towards the Labyrinth of Illusions. You lot best take a seat. This might take a while to cram into your brains**."

The Sages sat in a cicle, with the mighty forest god towering above them.

**"Now this dates back to the time of the war between the creator of our world and the one trying to conqurer it.**

**The war was leaning in our favor, the village boy had all the powers of Light within him, but he was still too young to handle them, and the demon God suspected nothing about this secret plot. But the Goddess knew the Dark God had something up his sleeve. So she created myself and the other four Gods to assist the Blessed Ones in battle. But somehow the God knew what she was up to and created his own band of demon digimon. 7 in fact. **

**So it was us against the demon digimon and our partners against their counter-parts. But something happened. **

**Three of the Blessed Ones; Courage, Love, and Peace, were battling War, Lust, and Fear. Although these three were probably the most skilled in battle, they were no match for the trap laid for them. Fear, who was the leader figure amongst the Curesd Ones, devised a plan to seperate these three from the others. They succeded, then called for all seven demon digimon to attack them. **

**Zhuqiaomon was Courage and Love's partner and the only wittness to what really happened, but I do know that Peace was killed, and Courage and Love were taken captive. **

**But to find out what happened to them you'll have to ask Zhuqiaomon since he was taken too. He has yet to tell me what happened, and I do not presume he ever will." **

"Well, everything must've turned out alright since we're all here." Mimi said.

**"Aye, they came back, but those two were never the same again. All Zhuqiaomon told me was that the Cursed Ones, Lust in particular, were the most vile creatures to ever live and will always be."**

There was a deadly silence settled around the group. It was hard to comprehend the things that happened to their ancestors all that time ago.

**"We fear history might repeat itself. You see, when the God was defeated we Gods trapped the Demon Lord digimon in the Shadow Abyss. The Shadow Abyss keeps each demon in an area that they can't escape from. One is the Dark Ocean and there are plenty others. But our power that keeps them trapped is weakening. We fear they might try to kill you.**

**But we have created a solution, but in order to make it work you will need to gather ten divices, or as we call them digivices. But in order to keep this plan safe, we have split the ten digivices amongst ourselves. It is your responsibility to go to each God and retrieve the digivice, while still continuing to gather the Crests."**

"Alright, but we have some questions for you first." Meg said.

"What exactly do the Crests do? Mimi got her's but she doesn't know what to do with it." Izzy stated.

**"Oh. I'm afraid I don't have an answer for that one. The Crests were more Azulongmon's thing. You'll have to ask him when you meet him. I may be a God, but I'm not all-knowing."**

"Do you know anything about the Labyrinth of Illusions?" Tai asked.

"**Aye, now that I can answer. Terrible place it is. The Labyrinth of Illusions is a huge maze filled with hidden rooms, vicious creatures, and known for it's trickery. Now the thing that you have to worry about most is the Illusions, hence the name. You have to determine whether somethings are real or not, and the only way to do that is if you have the gift of 6th sense. Luckily one of you does**." he motioned to Tai with one of his heads. **"You're the Sage of Flames, am I right?"**

"Yes." Tai nodded weakly.

**"When there's evil or danger nearby you can sense it can't you**." Tai nodded again**. "All of you have had experiences with your gifts at one time or another, but certain ones are already there and the Shards magnify them. The senses are probably the strongest, since everyone has them. That is the best guess I can come up with for why you and the female Sage of Light have already mastered your gift without your Shards."**

"So...how can I help?" Tai asked.

**"If what I'm guessing is correct, than you should be able to sense if something's real or not. Basically you hold your friends' lives in your hands."**

"Oh yea, no pressure." Tai smirked. Ebonwumon gave the group a small smile.

**"Now, if there are no more questions. Sages of Earth and Water, please step forward."**

Mimi and Joe stood up and walked toward the God, any nervous feelings they may have had when they walked in were gone.

"**Hold out your hands."**

The two Sages did so, and a bright green sphere and a steel grey sphere appeared in their palms. When the glow ceased they were clutching two divices with two buttons and a glass screen. Mimi's was green and Joe's was grey.

"**These are your new digivices. They allow you to know where anyone else with a digivice is and other mystical stuff that Azulongmon wouldn't tell me. Use them well Sages."**

"We will Sir." Joe assured.

The giant turtle nodded his two giant heads and a shining green aura surrounded him.

**"We will supply you with all you will need for your journey, but I'm afraid you will have to leave as soon as possible. The Dark Masters are already givin me enough trouble, and if they catch traces of your magic...well we're all doomed here." **he was laughing as he said this.

Thanks again Ebonwumon." Sora smiled.

"**No problem lass, now off with you."**

The group walked out of the grove, Mimi and Joe were staring at their digivices while Izzy was begging to see them.

"Come on Mimi, let me see it. I'm sure that I could figure out exactly how to use them if I plug you'r into my computer."

"No Izzy, remember the last time I lent you some techno stuff. You took apart my entire cell phone!" she yelled.

"Yea, but look on the bright side." he said, trying to calm her down.

"What bright side!" she demanded.

"Now that I know how it's built I won't take your next cell phone apart." he replied.

Mimi fumed at him and looked like she was about to yell several mean insults at him, but Izzy was spared when three Fairies floated towards them. A blue, orange, and yellow.

The yellow landed lightly on Sora's shoulder. "Hi, I'm here to heal all your wounds, and it looks like your arm is bruised." she hopped off Sora's shoulder and hovered just above her injured arm. A ray of light that looked like sun beams fell over her arm and traces of magic made her skin glitter. When the fairy had completed her work Sora had a huge grin plastered on her face.

"I can move my arm again!" she said excitedly, bending it and flexing her unused muscles. "Thank you."

The yellow fairy beamed and hopped from Sage to Sage, checking for more injuries.

The orange one hovered in front of Izzy. "I'm supposed to give you a detailed map on where the soverigns are located. Can I download it onto your hard drive?"

"Umm..sure." Izzy replied, slowly turning the screen to face her.

She hopped on several keys until letting a small sry of triumph. "Your computer is fully uploaded. Plus I added several things that could increase it's effincy."

"Really? Like what?" Izzy asked, obviously interested. He tapped several buttons, his eyes growing wide. "Prodigious. How did you override the holographic generator to upgrade it?"

The blue one stopped in front of Matt. "I'm here to supply you with anything you'll need. So what exactly _will_ you need?"

"Well, we should travel light, so we'll need food for sure, and a first-aid kit, but I think that would be enough." Matt replied.

The Fairy nodded and a tan colored bag and a light pink case appeared beside him.

"Not the best quality, but it should help." the Fairy said.

"Thanks." Matt replied.

"Now make haste, you all must leave." the yellow one said quickly.

Sora grabbed the pink first-aid kit and strapped it to her jeans, while Joe hung the food supply over his shoulder.

"But know that you all are welcome here. Know that you can count on those that live in this forest to help you out during your quest." the orange one said sincerely.

"Thanks. We owe you guys a lot." Tar said.

"Just defeat the Dark Masters, and we'll call it even." the blue one announced.

"We will, don't worry about that." Tai said.

"Now, head through those trees, on the outside if the forest is the Desert. Keep goint straight until you reach a rock shrine, that is where you will find the entrance to the Labyrinth of Illusions." the orange one instructed.

The group nodded and rushed through the trees.

It was dark by the time they reached the Desert region. Never had the group felt so revealed, no trees shielded them from enemies and the wind was brutally beating the sand around them.

They were exhausted and after walking several miles they stopped to rest for the night.

Off in the distance they could see several stones towering to form the marker for the Labyrinth. Looming before them like a tombstone.

Under the stars they lay, not lighting a fire in case they were spotted by enemies. Utter silence ligered around the still campsite, sleeping so near to a place that they could easily die from had shaken more than a few nerves.

"Is everyone else as worried as I am?" Meg whispered.

Nodds answered her question.

"This is actually much worse than Corpse Cove. Since we don't know what's within it." Tar added, also keeping her voice low.

"We didn't know what was in Corpse Cove either." Joe protested.

"Yea, but we had motivation to make us go in there. Mimi." Matt said.

"Plus the Gatsumon village." Sora added.

"This time it's different...we don't have that extra push to get us through this." Izzy said.

"Except the Shard." Mimi added.

Another round of silence took over the group. Sora glanced to her right where Tai, who had been strangely quiet since leaving the Forest, was leaning against a sand dune looking up at the sky.

She realized he must be under an extreme amount of pressure after what Ebonwumon had said. But she knew him well enough to know he would never show it, and he never collapses under pressure, good thing too.

She sighed and rested her back on the warm sand. It had been dark for at least two hours and the sand was still warm. Maybe it would've been smarter to walk at night and sleep all day.

She looked at the people around her, all sleeping or eyelids drooping. So different from one another, but all brought together for the same purpose. To save Digitania, our home.

Her eyes slowly drooped and the last images of the night faded away with the last glimpses of starlight.

The next morning seemed to have uplifted the Sages' spirits. Perhaps all they needed was a night's rest to clear their minds.

"Hey Izzy, are you still trying to decipher the digivices?" Tai asked. It was dawn and the sunlight made the sand around them shine like gold.

"Yes, and I'm really close to finding a break-through." he replied.

"Well, come on. You know, you're probably the key to this whole Labyrinth thing." Tar added.

Izzy stopped typing and looked at her. "How am _I_ the key to this mission?"

"You're good with riddles and puzzles and that kind of thing." Sora replied.

"Yea, but only on computer games and discovering small clues for various things. There's no way I could figure out our way through a giant Labyrinth." he protested.

"Just imagine this is a computer game." Kari started to say.

"Yea, one that we could really die from if we take a wrong turn." Joe mumbled.

Kari nudged him in the stomach. "As I was saying, imagine this is a huge virtual reality game. While you figure out the different ways to go, we'll defend you. Plus Tai's power is the ultimate cheat code."

Izzy considered this for a moment.

"Besides, you're probably the most brillant one here. And if you can't do it...who can?" Tk asked, a small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

This seemed to boost Izzy's confidence. "Well, I guess...if it's the only way to get the Shard.

Izzy was still slightly red and mumbling to himself that he wasn't brilliant, but using every other word that means the same thing or similar while they walked through the blazing heat to the stone structure.

"I'm starving." Mimi whined. "I thought we'd be able to go shopping in that town back there. I was going to order a cheese burger and an ice cream sudea, and maybe some -"

"Mimi would you stop it. You're making us hungry too." Joe said angrily.

"I hope the illusions in this place are of ice cream and cold root beer floats." Sora said.

"Me too, and ice cream cake." Tai laughed.

"Mmm...ice cream covered in chocolate syurp and sprinkles and -" Meg started.

Joe's groan interrupted her. "I'm I the only one who's brain hasn't been fried by the sun."

"Looks that way." Matt comented, placing his hands behind his neck.

"We're walking towards one of the deadliest places on Digitania, and you guys are thinking about FOOD!" Joe yelled.

"Geez Joe, relax. We all know what's at stake. We're just tryig to ignore the heat." Tai said.

"Relax he tells me. I'll show him relaxed." Joe started rambling. He was so wrapped up in talking to himself that he didn't hear anyone yelling at him to stop. Joe took one more step but the ground slipped beneath him.

"Joe!" eveyone yelled. Kari grasped his wrist just as he was about to fall through a secret hole in the ground, but she was being pulled down too.

Tk wrapped his arms around her wais and dug his heels into the sand, but they still continued to slide. Matt held onto his brother, and Mimi grabbed Matt, Izzy tried to save Mimi and it wasn't long before an entire chain of Sages was formed, and they were still sliding slowly downward.

It didn't take long for Kari's feet to slide over the edge, followed by Tk, etc.

They landed with a loud "thump" in what appeared to be a man-made corridor underground. The ground was made of dirt, and the ceiling weren't too high, but the stones that made up the walls were neatly arranged in parallel rows and columns. It was pitch black and extreamly old.

Tar coughed and brushed the dust off her shirt. "Where are we?" she asked.

Izzy stood up and checked his laptop for any damages. "We must be inside the Labyrinth." he said.

"What makes you say that?" Tk asked.

"This is the most common form of maze. Simple. So that thieves or bandits would have a hard time trying to figure out if the hallway they chose was one they'd already been in." he explained.

"Like at Windy Glen." Sora added.

"Precisley."

"So where shold we start?" Matt asked.

"In a labyrinth it's best to choose a certain direction and stick with it, just in case you get lost and decide to go back." Izzy said.

"So how about left?" Kari suggested.

Tai narrowed his eyes toward the left corridor. A dizzying feeling overtook him for a moment. "I don't think left's a good choice."

"Why?" Tar asked.

"Something's down there. And I don't like the feeling it's giving me." he replied.

"Alright. No left." Sora shrugged. "We'll go right."

They all started walking towards the right when Tai passed the center wall that seperated the right and left corridor. A spiritual tug on his arm made him stop. He looked intently at the wall_. Illusions, that's what makes this place so dangerous. Trick walls and hidden passageways._

"Wait a second guys." he said.

Everyone came to a stop. In this place Tai was the only one who could see past the illusions. If he told them to stop they wouldn't make a big deal about it.

"What?" Matt asked.

"I think there's a hidden passageway behind this wall." he said. Tai outstretched his hand and touched the wall, but he withdrew it after it shocked him."Yep, that's definately where we have to go."

"Well, go on Izzy." Mimi encouraged.

Izzy nodded simply and walked through the wall as sparks flew trying to shock him into turning back.

When he was safely on the other side the others waited anxiously for him to come back.

"Izzy?" Tar called.

"Can you hear us?" Meg asked.

Still nothing.

"Hold on." Matt said. He stepped towards the wall and a light blue aura foarmed around his body. Frost slowly climbed up the wall and the sparks died and the wall cracked and crumbled.

They group rushed forward, but saw Izzy calmly standing on the other side.

"What took you guys so long?" he snapped.

"We thought...uhh..." Kari started, not exactly sure what to say.

""Whatever, let's just go." he said.

When he turned his back the remaining Sages either glared at him, widened their eyes, or thier mouths dropped.

"What's up with him?" Tai asked Tar.

She shook her head in confusion but followed behind Izzy anyway.

They almost immediatly reached another fork, although this had four different corridors to choose from.

"Great." Sora muttered.

"Come on, let's try this way." Izzy said, he walked through the far right tunnel.

"Wait, Izzy." Tai said, trying to stop his friend. Just looking down that tunnel had made his vision go blury and the hairs on the back of his neck stnad on end.

"Izzy! Come back here!" she yelled, her voice was stern, but quivered slightly. She raced down the corridor, with Tar in persuit, shouting both their names.

Two high pitched screams echoed from that corridor, which caused the Sages to sprint down the hallway only to find the three of them unharmed.

"Are you guys okay?" Meg asked.

"Yea, what made you think we weren't" Tar asked. Only Tai, Sora, and Kari noticed the slight venom in her voice.

"We heard screaming." Matt said.

"Maybe it was all an illusion." Mimi shrugged.

"Maybe.." Sora trailed off. The other 7 eyed the three suspiciously.

"Well, we better keep moving." Tar said sternly.

"Tar, we can't go this way, there's something down here that's giving me a migraine." Tai said.

"Scared Tai?" Tar asked smirking.

Sora winced. _That was a mistake and Tar knew it _she thought.

Tai's eyes narrowed. "No, but I have enough common sense to know that this way will just lead us into danger."

"Common sense, fear, they both mean the same thing." Tar jeered. "That Tai is too afraid of the big bad hallway to face it."

Tai's eyes flashed but he made no move towards her, instead he stared directly into her eyes. _Something's not right here. Normally it's Tar stopping me from doing omething like this, not the other way around._

"You're not Tar." he said, his voice held such a sureness that everyone gawked at him.

"Tar" smirked at him. "You're not as dumb as you look, I'll give you that. But you still fell for our trap."

The walls around them suddenly began to glow a dull blue and the 7 Sages were sucked into the swirling blue mist that the walls had turned into.

(A/N: Okay, because this story is getting so long, I've decided to cut to the important people only. in other words, my FAVS, lol. Don't get me wrong. I love them all, but I decided to make some cuts, not only because it needs to be shorter, but cuz i can't think of anything for certain people, lol. But that does not mean i value them any less than my favs, so forgive me! But...if u have any ideas about what they should say...tell me in your review, and i can mention it in the next chapt!)

Sora skidded to a hault on her shoulder. She looked around and realized she had emerged from another wall illusion. She jumped to her feet and pushed her palms against the cold stone, sealed tight.

She let out a sigh of frustration as she turned to look around. She was trapped in a four sided prision with no way to escape, as far as she knew. She could tell she was still in the Labyrinth since the stones were the same shape and color. Sora took a few steps away from the wall, and torches suddenly lit up around her.

She gasped in surprise, but not only because of the sudden illumination, but there was a figure standing on the other side of the square. Leaning casually against the wall was...Herself! Yes, it was an almost identical version of herself, except her eyes were bloodshot and her skin was a ghostly white. She wore the exact same outfit, except the colors were different. Her shirt was black and her jeans had dark red stains splatterd on them.

"Surprised to see me Sora?" the copy asked.

"W-Who are you?" Sora asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" the double asked. "No to you I suppose not. To put it bluntly, I'm you. The darker half of you. The side that doesn't get to come out and play as much." her red eyes glittered.

"Why should I believe you. This could all be an illusion." Sora argued.

"Because I can tell you your true feelings about everything. About being a Sage, how it scares you to death but you're afraid to show it. About what you thought of your mom before she got blown up, pushy and way too overprotective. What you think of your friends...What you think about Tai." Dark Sora paused to relish the look on Sora's face before continuing. "Well, I'm sick of being forced to the back of your mind. Now the only way to stop that is...to kill you, unfortunatly."

Sora's eyes darkened. "I'd like to see you try." she challenged.

"Ooh...that had a little me in it. But I agree, no more talking, time for action."

Matt glared darkly at the figure before him. The one person who he could never get away from during his life. Himself. Well, part of him, the darker half. Black shirt and pants with the darkest grey eyes imaginable, almost soul-less.

"You'd have to face me sooner or later, Matt." the darker part of himself smirked.

"I would've prefered later. And how can I be so sure you're not just an illusion?" Matt demanded.

Dark Matt smirked, his slate grey eyes steely. "I know about the darkness in your heart. The darkness that developed when you were young, when your parents seperated, when your brother was taken from you. The darkness that grew as time went on, casting you out and labeling you as a lone wolf. The darkness that tells you every night that these people arn't your friends and that they'll never need you."

"Sht up!" Matt yelled. "That's a lie!"

"Is it Matt? Or is it that they are your friends, and you, who has always been alone, doesn't want to have their friendship." Dark Matt said.

"No, that's not it at all! I-"

"You can't lie to yourself Matt. You tried before when you said Tk and your mom would come back, but ou knew in your heart that they all betrayed you, they never -"

"Shut up!" Matt yelled again, except this time his eyes started glowing blue and ice crystals stabbed upward through the ground, nearly striking Dark Matt.

"And here I wanted you to give up without a fight. Oh well. I guess I'll just have to beat you in this too."

"Whoa, did someone get the name of the bus that just hit me?" Tai asked as he rubbed his head.

"Always with the jokes, arn't we?" a voice hissed.

Tai opened his eyes widely and he spun around to see...himself? Yes, it had to be him, he looked exactly like him, except for a few things. His eyes were a dark red, the color of freshly spilled blood, and his usual shirt (which is red now, but used to be blue) with the star on it was black. The only other thing that was different was the malevolent smirk etched on his face, Tai didn't even know he was capable of looking so evil, it kind of creeped him out.

"And you are...?" Tai asked.

"You of course. I thought even you were smart enough to figure that out." Dark Tai chuckled.

Tai found something strangly familiar in his dark side's laugh, almost as though he'd heard it frequently.

"And how can I be sure?" Tai asked.

"Being careful are we? Well, there's a first time for everything I guess." Dark Tai smirked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Tai flared.

"Only that you get your friends in avoidable danger almost every day. Plus you're the most heartless person on the face of Digitania. You never see the pain in your friends' eyes, either that or you just don't care. You're probably the coldest person in your group, which is pretty ironic since you're the Sage of Fire."

"That's not true, I do care."

"More like care about yourself only. I heard Matt say that you had ice running through your veins."

"I don't believe you." Tai argued.

"Oh, your friends talk about you all the time. Matt, Izzy, Mimi,...Sora." Dark Tai smirked, he could tell that last one had left a mark.

"My friends wouldn't do that to me." Tai said sternly.

"Who said they were your friends?" Dark Tai asked.

Tai's eyes started to glow bright orange. "That's going too far."

"This shouldn't take long." Dark Tai smirked, his eyes starting to glow red.

Sora dodged yet another attack from her counter-part and sent a whirlwind in her direction. Sora jumped into the air and grasped Dark Sora's wrist and flung her into a wall, which cracked several stones and made a large dent.

Dark Sora glared at her before jumping off the wall and kicking her into the ground.

She laughed as she hovered in the air. "You want to know the best part of you being gone. The fact that with you out of the way I'll have no problems getting Tai."

Sora's eyes started glowing crimson and with an amazing speed she grasped Dark Sora's shoulder and plowed her straight through the wall.

On the other side of the wall Sora saw Joe battling himself with anger and hatred in his eyes.

She ducked as Dark Sora sent a wave of powerful winds to throw her halfway across the rom, and rushed over to Joe.

"I see you've got the same problam." he sad as he created a long string of magic and used it liked a whip against his counter part.

"Yea. I don't think we'll be able to last much longer, we need to figure out a way to defeat them since this isn't working." Sora said, she thrust her arms forward and hurricane-like winds were thrown at Dark Sora, but she used them to her advantage and flew high into the air then landed a hard kick in Sora's stomache that knocked her into the ground.

She let out a small cry but stood up and continued the fight.

Matt was fairing no better. Whatever he threw at his dark side, his dark side could send it back or dodge it.

He created several dagger-like ice shards and flung them at Dark Matt, but he easily gained control over them and threw them back at Matt. But Matt froze them together, but while he did that he produced several more ice daggers. He threw the giant ice block as hard as he could, and Dark Matt could barely stop it, and while he was occupied trying to stop the larger ice, he didn't notice the smaller ice-daggers flying towards him until they dug into his skin.

Dark Matt yelled angrily. His eyes grew narrow and he outstretched his arms quickly, causing 5 meter tall ice crystals to shoot from the floor and crisscross to strike Matt.

Matt moved out of the way to avoid th epointed area, but he ended up being shoved into the wall snd straight through it.

He landed on his back on the other side, but rolled out of the way as more crystals shot towards him.

"Matt!" someone yelled.

Matt turned his head to see Tar fighting her duplicate as well. He rushed over to her as more and more crystals followed him.

"I see you've got your hands full too." she said as she dodged the ice crystals.

"How do we defeat these guys?" Matt asked aloud. "We have the same powers, I had no idea I was this tough."

"I know what you mean. Kind of make you feel sorry for the Dark Masters." Tar added. She shrank into a shadow and all Matt saw was two shadows, one with purple eyes one with white, ramming into one another.

He nearly forgot his own Dark side when something stabbed his arm. He turned around and saw at least twenty ice shards racing towards him. He barely missed the first few, but the rest managed to cut him or go through his skin.

"Had enough Matt?" Dark Matt smirked.

"Not yet." Matt replied.

Tai and his dark half were fighting furiously, both moving so fast that it was nearly impossible to see them. The only clues that they were there were the scortch marks all over the walls and floor and the cracks throughout all the walls.

They both stopped for a moment, standing on either side of the square, panting heavily. Both had burns on their arms, but other than that they were untouched.

Dark Tai's black and blue flames lingered arond him. While Tai's orange and red ones licked his arms and legs.

"Tired?" Tai asked.

"Not even close." his dark half replied.

The flames grew larger around them as they waited for the other to attack. After a few moments they both attacked at once, but one was able to force the other into the wall behind him.

"Tai are you okay?" Meg asked. He had crashed through the wall, but landed on his feet unharmed.

"Fine." he replied.

She averted her eyes to the hole in the wall and saw Tai's dark side emerge from the smoke and rubble.

"Whoa, you have one too." she said.

"Yea, where's your's?" he asked.

"I...defeated her already." she replied after a moment's hesitation.

Tai nodded, his eyes narrow. Flames covered his hands and he threw several balls of fire at his counter-part. The first few he stopped, but an explosion coming from the other wall distracted him long enough to get a face full of fire. His cheek had a minor burn on it, but it was a major blow to his pride.

Emerging from the rocks, Sora ran out with Matt, Tar, and Joe in close persuit. From the other wall Kari, Tk, and Izzy came. Their dark sides joining Tai's in the center.

"Matt, your Shard is the one that's here. We'll hold them off you go." Izzy yelled. He pointed through the rocks that they had come out of seconds ago.

Matt nodded and ran off.

"Izzy thinks that if we fight our opposite elements we could win easier." Kari whispered to Tai and Sora.

"That sounds like it could work." Tar nodded, none of them took their eyes off their dark side.

"This should be good. Us vs. You. The Dark Sages vs. the Light Sages." Dark Tai smirked.

"Yea, Yea, Yea , the fight of the century, let's get it started already." Tai replied.

"Ha, why rush your downfall?" Dark Matt asked.

"We'll just see who has the upper hand." Tar smirked.

"We will." Dark Izzy said.

Dark Matt sent a cloud of freezing air at Joe, but it sizzled into ashes after a glare from Tai.

Dark Tai's eyes narrowed darkly and the Dark Sages all rushed forward. Joe thrusted a fountain of water at Dark Izzy, who's magic crackled and fizzed until he collapsed. He slowly faded away, leaving a dark aura that rushed into Izzy.

Tk and Kari clapsed hands and sent a bright light at Dark Tar, sending her to the ground and retreating back into Tar.

Meg put her hands together like aprayer, and when she opened them, a dark mist flooded Dark Tk and Kari, making them cough and studder until they too collapsed and rejoined their good side.

Izzy held his hands in front of him, a purple aura formed around him and lightning began to strike Dark Sora until she was back in Sora.

Sora moved one arm in a circular motion, and although Dark Mimi tried to create a shield, she was unsuccessful as they were uprooted and she retreated back into Mimi from exhaustion.

Tai smirked as he sent a wall of fire at Dark Matt who instantly fell to the ground yelling and cursing until his aura rushed to find Matt.

Sora created a whirlwind which pressed Dark Joe against the wall and Tai's fire made his power evaporate like smoke until he retreated into Joe.

Dark Tai watched as the last of his friends were obliterated, he made no move to help or escape. Finally he was the last one.

"I owe you all more credit than I gave you. Although it doesn't take much to defeat those morons." he said.

Tai shook his head. "I'm not the heartless one here, you are."

"That may be true, but remember, I am part of you." Dark Tai's eyes began to glow bright red and he slowly faded back into Tai.

"Is everyone else as freaken out by this mission as I am?" he asked after a moment.

Everyone started to laugh.

Matt came walking out of the wall, he was glowing light blue, the same way Mimi had been. The glow slowly faded and around his neck another Crest hung. Light blue with a yin yang symbol.

"Wow that was fast." Matt observed.

"Yep, and looks like you have your Crest too."Meg said cheerfully.

"So did you hear the voice?" Mimi asked.

"Yea. Crest of Friendship and gifted with the ability to Freeze Time."

"Impressive. But you could do so much more yep yep." an unfamiliar voce said.

The Sages spun around and saw a cream puff with wings hovering in front of them.

"Piximon!" they all cried.

"Yep, yep. And I have been assigned to teach you more about your powers and how to use them better. Yep Yep. So let us get out of here and go to my home."

me: hello everybody! well, now that that's done, I have some bad news...i won't be able to update for a while cuz our state-wide tests TAKS are coming up and I have 4 this year, so I'm not gonna be able to go online that much (WHAAAAAAA) and it's also really late, so i'm gonna have to reply to your reviews tomorrow, i hope that's okay, lol. Well...luv y'all! U PEOPLE ROCK! And i'll see y'all in a few weeks!

I WANNA GIVE A SHOUTOUT TO **IAMKAGOMEILOVEINUYASHA**! IT WAZ HER B-DAY, although it was a while ago, but better late than never

P.S. My birthday's in exactly one week!


	11. To My AWESOME REVIEWERS!

HI EVERYONE! okay, since it waz real late when I last updated and I didn't have time to reply to your reviews...here they are! ENJOY! Oh, and those of u who have read my new chapt and reviewed it, u get 2 replys! YaY!

_**YamiTai: **lol, i'm makin up my story as i go along, and U'RE NEVER ALONE, lol. i sound like some wannabe superhero shudders. If u read my first story then...of course u know a little about what's gonna happen, the thing i like about prequels is thatit kinda puts all the missing pieces together. THANX FOR REVIEWING! YaY! U ROCK!_

_**Rayana Wolfer: **lol, i'll start with the Corpse Cove review, lol. AWWWW! U'RE SOOOO NICE! I totally agree, each DD should get a chance to be the main character, and who better to start out with than MIMI! lol. of course Tai's always gonna be there in the spotlight in his own way! (Tai 4eva! YaY!) yea, during this fic i was wonderin if i was bein too gory, lol, but like i told YamiTai i have no idea where i'm goin with my stories until they're done, lol. heehee, U GAVE me the ideas for my places, u deserve recognition, lol, heehee if u hadn't givin me ideas...i woulda come up with somethin (dun dun dun...) lame! gasp REVIEW #2: YaY! I LUV YIN/YANG TOO, yea just wait until the consiquences in the next chapt when Matt starts wonderin about what his dark side said, heehee, i'm so evil! lol, i luv that line too . THANK U SOOO MUCH for the website about the Soverigns, i thought I was gonna die since i knew NOTHIN bout them, it really helps . I CURSE SCHOOL! AND ALL WHO WORK IN IT! lol, i'm gonna try and update as soon as i can, but with TAKS (Texas Assesment of Knowledge and Skills) commin up, don't count on it bein too soon, grrr...and thanks 4 the happy b-day, u're right it's the 12, U'VE WON A FABULOUS VACATION TO...well...let me get back you on that, lol. THANX FOR THE REVIEWS! I LUV THEM! U'RE AWESOME!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha: **1st REVIEW: THANX! I've noticed that Meems isn't really mentioned much in a lot of stories too, that's why i wanted her to be the first to find her Shard , it's only fair right. lol, U GOT A SECRET ADMIRER, CONGRATS, lol, but a stalker would take the enjoyment outta it wouldn't it, lol. 2nd REVIEW: DOG SKILLET BISKET! YAY, that's a good thing right? lol. u're welcome for the happy birthday, i wanted to update on ur b-day, but my computer shut down, so i bought u a cake instead . Thanx for the happy b-day to me! YaY! glad u liked the chapt. , PIXIMON ROCKS! He's my fav digimon! lol. CANDY CORN IS AWESOME! it gets me really hyper! YaY HYPERNESS! heehee. i'll update as soon as i can, but i gots my state wide tests commin up...I HAVE 4 THIS YEAR! bites nails nervously THANX FOR THE REVIEW! U'RE AWSOME! TOTALLY!_

_**Priestess kurumi inu's sister: **U're Welcome! Aww...u're makin me blush, lol. Glad u love my story! CUZ I LUV UR REVIEWS! Think u can wait for me to update after my evil tests, lol. 2nd REVIEW: Thanx for the happy B-day! i like long chapts too, they keep u readin on the edge of ur seat, lol. U'RE AWESOME! LATERZ!_

_**Kiely: **HIYA! Thanx for the review! LUVED IT! HOPE TO HEAR FROM U AGAIN!(i tell this to all my reviewers) U TOTALLY ROCK! Peace out!_

_**star: **YaY! I LUV UR REVIEWS! U're soooooooooo AWESOME! yea, poor mimi, but hey, now she's one of the most powerful! YaY! heehee, trickness is fun , unexpectedishness, that's a fun word to say, i'm gonna be sayin that all day now, lol. And i completely understand, chocolate is 10 times better, starts to daydream about chocolate anyway U ROCK my friend! Hooray! _

_**Written Soldier: **well, i thank u for your constructive critism but i'm gonna reply to them anyway. It's a little ciche, but hey, they had to run into one another eventually. thanx . i know what u mean, some of the hard core romances i've read are just so...blah, although most of them are really good . pouts i like fluff, and i could cut the story lengths in half, but each place and each character needs a good lengthy chapt so that they have their own little story inside the main plot. Lol, the places are supposed to be ugly, duh, they're the most horrid places on Digitania, and i like to create names that roll off the tongue, stuff that sticks in your heads, plus Rayana Wolfer helped me out a lot . And thax for the B, but i know a B just stands for "this could be Better" Thanx for the review!_

_**Majestic Evil: **Whoa...AWESOME SCREEN NAME! Thanx sooo much for the review! hope u liked my most recent chapt too . U ROCK!_

_**Moonlight-Milkyway: **YaY! that is such a KOOL screen name! lol, i love to say that to people when i like their names, lol. YaY! I'm glad u like both my stories , and don't worry, i'll never give my story up . i't too much fun to get reviews from u guys to stop. Thanx for the REVIEW! U're AWESOME! _

_**battousai-clau: **Thanx MUCH for my two reviews! U're reviews are so KOOL! And i'll update as soon as i can! Laterz!_

_lol, well i hope that's everybody. You GUYS WHO REVIEW ARE THE GREATEST! That's why this whole page is dedicated to you! LUV U GUYS! _

_And I'll have that next chapt. up soon, but i gots lots of things commin up too, but i'll manage somehow . _

_LATERZ Y'ALL!_


	12. Wicked Woods

**A mob of angry reviewers comes through my computer while I'm asleep** "_**UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE**_!"

**me**: **AHHHH!** **falls out of bed** **What!**

**Reviewers: You haven't updated in FOREVER!**

**me: It hasn't been THAT long, lol.** **looks at last time updated AHHHHHHH! HOLY BUTTER BISCUTTS! 3 MONTHS!**

**Reviewers**: **I think you owe us ALL an explanation! while tying me to my** **computer chair**

**me: I-I...OKAY FINE! **_**I DID IT! **_

**Reviewers: blank look** **Did what**?

**me:** **Arn't I on trial? **

**Reviewers: umm...no.**

**me: Well that's not right! If I'm being accused for soething I wanna fair trial! types random buttons and we're all in a court room**

**Reviewers: How'd ya do that?**

**me: laughs evilly I AM THE MIGHTY AUTHOR PERSON! BOW BEFORE MY AWESOME POWER!**

**Reviewers: whispering okay, maybe if we back up slowly she won't notice**

**me: Kay, so you wanna know why it's taken me so long. I'll give you my LOOOOOOONG list**

**1. I won a MAJOR writing contest in my city, where only 25 entrees outta thousands won, AND I WAS ONE OF THEM! does a little dance But because of that, I was busy almost EVERY weekend for a month! So I had no time to write! AND IT WAS KILLIN ME!**

**2. For the last month and a half we've been busy moving into our new house. Two words...NOT. FUN. I had NO internet access for like EVER! I THOUGHT I WAS GONNA GO INSANE...ER!**

**3. My psychiatrist diagnosed me with writer's block lightning flashes and dramatic music plays STEFFI! ARE YOU PLAYING WITH THE STORY EFFECTS AGAIN! **

**3. I just bought Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 and their hypnotizing powers have glued me to the PS2 for two weeks, but I've almost defeated both of them so I'm giving my button pressing fingers a rest and going back to my true love WRITING! (did that sound as corny as I think it did?)**

**4. My two best friends from Denver were here visiting while we were moving, so even after the computer was set up, the only thing I could do was check my e-mail. pouts **

**me: So there are my VERY good excuses for not updating sooner. Moving, award ceremonies and stuff, friends, and writer's block. Sux don't it. **

**Reviewers: Well...okay, we forgive you!**

**me: YaY! You all get free cookies! ANNNNNNND as if that weren't awesome enough, this chapt. IS EXTRA LONG! I'm serious, this is the longest thing I have ever written. And there's TORTURE! (i like torture), and a very big scene envolving Tai and Matt. And a new character! YaY! **

**Okay, I've kept you long enough...SO WHY ARN'T YOU READIN IT YET!**

_TTTTTTT_

Piximon, how'd you get in here anyway?" Meg asked the pink powder-puff with wings.

"I used the front door." he said casually. "You Sages weren't very hard to find, there was a lot of crashing and yelling, so I followed and found you here."

"Lucky us." Joe said with a hint of sarcasm. Mimi nudged him roughly in the ribs.

"So uh... why are you here Piximon?" Tar asked.

"I'm here to train you yep yep." he replied. He jumped into the air and hovered in front of Mimi's face. "You're all Sages, but do you realize what the title really means; how important you are?"

Mimi had a blank look on her face. "Well I -"

"Of course you don't," he interrupted. He hovered over to Matt. "You're the most recent to get a crest, but do you know why a certain one was chosen for each of you, or what they are?"

"Umm..." Matt started.

"Nope, didn't think so." Piximon stated. This time he hovered in front of Izzy. "Your elements work in a cycle, one is needed for another, have you figured that out?" Piximon didn't even wait for a reply from Izzy, instead he hovered in front of Tai. "The elements can be combined to become more powerful, and other Sages can partially control the different elements, did you know that?"

He landed gently on the ground. "That's exactly why Genni asked me to train you. To teach you all you'll need to know before going up against any more of the Dark Masters.You Sages were very lucky that Metal Seadramon thinks so highly of himself and didn't think you stood a chance, otherwise who knows what could've happened."

Kari's eyes suddenly grew wide. "Speaking of the Dark Masters, we didn't battle the one guarding this place!"

Everyone gasped when they realized she was right. But Piximon still had his goofy grin plastered on his face. "Relax Sages, Lady Devimon got a vision that you would beat her so she took off."

"She had a vision?" Tai repeated.

Piximon rolled his large eyes. "Geez, did Genni teach you anything?"

"Nothing of this present time period." Izzy replied.

"Well then that's what I'll be teaching you." Piximon stated. "Now all we have to do is get out of here."

The group exhanged a look. "You _do _know how to get out of here, don't you?" Sora asked.

"Of course not." Piximon said casually.

The Sages gawked at him.

"And this guy's supposed to be a legendary trainer?" Tk whispered to Matt. Matt nodded in complete agreement, although he didn't seem to be listening to anything happening around him.

Matt's thoughts were still lingering around what his evil side had told him.

_"I know about the darkness in your heart"_

_"The darkness that tells you every night that these people arn't your friends"_

_"Or you, who has always been alone, doesn't want their friendship"_

The last statement was the thought that was troubling him the most.

He lifted his blue crest in his hand and stared at it intently_. Friendship? Is that really my crest? My dark side was right about one thing, I can't lie to myself, so am I really kidding myself in believing I've been as much of a friend to them as they have to me?_

He closed his hand around the crest and returned his attention to Piximon.

"Your first test will be to get us out of here quick and easy." he stated, he couldn't hide the broad grin creeping up his mouth. He really enjoyed greeting his new students with a small panic attack. He actually did know how to get out of here, but it would be much more fun to watch and see what the Sages could do.

"We could try to teleport again." Tk suggested. The duo hadn't risked teleporting again when they realized how much energy and magic it took to go from one place to another. The last time they had on the Dark Continent they collapsed, completely drained of energy.

Piximon looked slightly impressed at the suggestion. "Teleport. Now there's something that I'm surprised you learned how to do on your own."

Tk and Kari didn't know whether this was a compliment or an insult, so they decided to keep their mouths shut.

"Alright, get us outside of this place, and leave the rest to me." Piximon announced.

The two Sages of Light nodded and clasped their hands together. The pink and gold light radiating from them mixed together and connected their powers. It only took a few mere seconds for the gold and pink dome to conjure around the group and spark with its bright intensity. In a bright flash of light the group disappeared, leaving the Labyrinth of Illusions as vacant as it was before Lady Devimon reawakened it's dark power.

They reappeared outside the Labyrinth, Kari and Tk immediately collapsed from exhaustion but their siblings were at their sides before they hit the ground.

"Impressive, yep yep. But not as impressive as the place we just left." Piximon stated.

"You think the Labyrinth is impressive?" Joe asked, disbelief shining in his eyes.

Piximon grinned and motioned for the group to watch what was happening.

To everyone's shock, the underground walls were slowly rising above the sand. The walls were no longer the old stone the sages had seen earlier, but had formed into solid walls of pure gold. The dark vines that had climbed up the walls were now covered in various flowers, and the entrance had two large copper pillars on either side, an ancient writing spiraling around it.

In between the two pillars stood a man and a woman, and many others behind them. All were wearing long, elegant robes of whites and greys.

Piximon approached the two standing nearest and exchanged several words that the Sages couldn't hear, but whatever the strangers told him made him nodd his head gravely.

"What do you think they're talking about?" Sora asked.

"Umm...I'm still trying to figure out how a maze that's at least 10 miles long and 5 miles wide could possibly be raised out of the ground and completely change in form and appearance." Izzy stated.

By now Piximon had finished talking to the group and walked back to the Sages.

"We have to go, the Ancients believe that Lady Devimon will return soon."

"The Ancients?" Tar asked.

Piximon glanced behind him at the confused Sages. "All will be explained when we reach my home. Now, we must hurry."

"But what about those people? The Ancients?" Matt asked.

"Don't worry about them." he said quickly. The digimon drew a ring in the air that started glowing white with his spear and entered it, but when he did, he disappeared!

The Sages glanced at one another, eyes wide, wondering what to do next.

"Well, hurry up." Piximon poked his head out of the circle and motioned for them to follow. With a final glance the Sages followed.

The other side of the ring looked no different than the first, and the group was confused as to why until Izzy shouted. "Prodigious! It's a barrier that bends light so it appears that we're not here!"

"So...we're invisable." Meg put simply.

"Yes, rather fascinating, I should take notes on how Piximon created it." Izzy replied, taking out his computer and beginning to record this new data.

The Sages glanced back at the Labyrinth, but it had vanished. Gold sparks were floating up toward the sky where it had been, and the people were gone.

"Whoa." Tk mused.

"What happened?" Sora asked.

"The curse has been lifted." Piximon stated.

He closed the ring and the invisable barrier was lifted off the ground and started speeding toward the opposite edge of the desert.

The desert sand beneath them was flying past, and it didn't take long for the Labyrinth to be out of sight.

"Piximon, who were those people?" Mimi asked.

Piximon sighed and floated in mid-air with his legs crossed in a meditating position.

"The Ancients are magical gardians. They are somewhat like the digimon Gods, only human. They were the ones who created the crests and foretold the Legend of the Sages. They also have everything to do with you being chosen as Sages."

This caught everyone's attention.

"Genni was one of them, he remains to be the only surviving member of the Ancients." Piximon continued.

"But, everyone we saw back there-"

"Were their spirits preserved in the Labyrinth." Piximon interrupted. "Piedmon had attacked the Labyrinth before he was sent to the Dark Continent. He attacked it to gain the gardians and the crests. He succeeded in capturing the crests, which turned into the shards since they weren't with their chosen or their creators, but the gardians have been kept safe thanks to Genni."

"So...the Labyrinth was a place for good?" Sora questioned.

"Yep yep, until Piedmon killed all the Ancients and placed a curse on it." Piximon replied.

"And, who are the gardians?" Tai asked.

"The gardians are digimon. Digimon who will be partnered with the ten of you for protection." Piximon replied.

"Wow, our own digimon partners." Mimi exclaimed. "When will we meet them? I hope mine's cute!"

"You will meet the gardians when all the Shards have been collected." Piximon stated.

Suddenly the barrier came to a hault. The stop was so sudden that all the Sages were thrown into one of the invisable walls.

"Oww...you could warn someone before doing that." Tar yelled.

"Yea...and where are we?" Joe asked. The barrier had stopped in the middle of nowhere. All that could be seen for miles was sand, and the occasional dune.

"We're here." Piximon exclaimed happily, plopping to the ground and recreating the exit.

The Sages looked around for any sign of a great trainer's home as they helped one another up from the fall.

"This is it." Meg stated disbelievingly.

"No, this is just my front gate." Piximon laughed.

"What gate?" Sora asked.

Piximon deleted the barrier,...or at least that's what it seemed like he did..., it was hard to tell since it was invisable.

Then he calmly walked to a specific part of the desert.

He held his hand up, and to the shock of everyone, a triangular shaped doorway appeared. It looked like the desert had been ripped open and behind it a jungle dwelled.

Piximon stepped through the rip in the dimension and motioned for the Sages to follow.

"Do you think it's safe?" Matt wondered aloud.

"Plenty of digimon have been trained by Piximon, and they all seemed alright when they returned from his training facility." Izzy stated.

"Yea, but, he just...I don't even know what he just did. But could opening portals to other dimensions be a good kind of ability?" Mimi asked.

"Maybe it's not a portal to another dimension." Joe said. Everyone's attention was now directed on him.

"Then what do you think it is?" Tai asked.

"I think it might be another barrier that prevents people and digimon from detecting it." Joe replied.

"Of course, it makes perfect sense." Izzy agreed. "Piximon is a great trainer, and very well known. If everyone knew where he lived then he'd be bothered all the time about training. But if he concealed his house, then he could choose the ones he wants to train and get peace. It's genius!"

"Hmm...or the perfect setup for a trap." Meg said bitterly.

"What makes you say that?" Tar challenged.

"I mean, he could easily keep us in there. We could be trapped in there with who knows what." Meg argued.

Sora quickly stepped in between the feuding friends, sensing a potentially dangerous argument rising. "Guys, there's no need to argue about something that we're not sure about."

"Yea," Tai agreed. "But I am sure about one thing. Even Piximon needs to eat, and I can't be the only one starving, since we haven't eaten anything decent in two days." He swung Kari's arm over his shoulder and follwed Piximon into the jungle.

Izzy, Mimi, and Joe shrugged and rushed after him. Sora rolled her eyes and mumbled "Stupid Tai." under her breath before going too, but she was glad that _someone _had enough courage to follow Piximon so she couldn't hide the small smile on her lips.

Tar looked over at Meg with a triumphant smile before following after her friends. Matt calmly followed her, carrying his unconscious brother with him.

Meg glared at their backs, her eyes suddenly began glowing red. She thrust her hand at a large boulder nearby, which exploded into a thousand pieces. When she was sure her anger had cooled she rushed to join everyone else.

The moment she had reunited with her friends on the other side, the opening sealed itself, although they could still see through it.

Everyone was standing in the midst of a jungle. Large trees stood above them and the most peculiar flowers grew alongside a dirt road leading up to a mountain, but that wasn't what made all the Sages stop.

Up high on a moutain, barely visable from the clouds surrounding it, was a huge house. It seemed to have 5 to 6 floors, and had clearly enough space for 100 guests, plus an indoor swimming pool and indoor golf course.

"Whoa, now that's what I call living." Matt said in awe.

"It looks more like a castle than a house." Mimi agreed.

After marvalling at the house the group slowly turned their attention to the distance between the house and where they stood.

Joe looked at Piximon hopefully, "Someone with such a large luxurious house would provide some sort of transportation to get there...right?"

Piximon started laughing like it was the funniest thing he had ever heard in his life. "Of course not. You will walk."

"WHAT!" everyone yelled.

"Think of the road as the hardships you will have to face in the near future. You have to take them one step at a time to reach your goal, and in this case, my home." Piximon explained.

The group groaned, it looked like a day's journey from their present location, and that was if they didn't stop.

"We'd better get going." Matt noted with a roll of his eyes.

"Arn't _you_ coming?" Meg asked Piximon.

"HAHAHA, No. The Ten of you have to earn the knowledge and guidence you seek. And I can't think of a better way at the moment than walking through the rough terrain of the mountains without any idea of what you're up against. It will teach you teamwork and...all that other good stuff." Piximon stated. "But you should hurry, it would be a good idea to get there by sunset."

"Why sunset?" Izzy asked.

"Because, dinner is served shortly after sunset." Piximon laughed. "Good luck Sages." With that final good-bye he disappeared in a puff of white smoke.

The group stood in a shocked silence before Tai spoke. "Is it just me, or does he seem alot different than the "hero" Piximon we've all heard about."

The group nodded. "Well, we better get going before sunset arrives." Joe said. "Judging by the position of the sun...we have about 7 hours."

"7 Hours to walk all that!" Mimi exclaimed.

"It seems pretty impossible." Sora agreed.

"Well, our whole point for being here is to learn about our powers and abilities." Tar said.

"Maybe if we use them we'll be able to get there faster. That's probably what Piximon expects." Tai agreed.

"Then let's go." Matt said impatiently.

The mountain turrain was just as Piximon described it. Rough, Rocky, and Dangerous. They had journeyed about halfway up, and the trail (if you could call it a trail) was high above the ground and close to the edge of the cliffs.

They hadn't stopped yet, but the lack of food and sleep was beginning to take a toll on them.

"Can we stop now?" Mimi whined.

Tai gritted his teeth to keep his hot temper under control. "Meems, you've asked that same question 10 times already and I said let's find a safer place to stop so we don't have to worry about falling over the edge."

"Tai, let's stop. At this rate we'll fall over from exhaustion." Matt argued.

Tai turned around and glared at him. "Matt if we stop here we'll be in more danger than if we keep going."

"Tai look at us, we're tired, we need rest, and you're depriving us of it."

"I'm not depriving anyone of anything, I'm just postponning it. The safer the location the more comfortable we'll be." Tai snapped.

"Postponning, depriving, we're still not getting any!" Matt yelled. "I thought as much, you _do _have ice running through your veins."

Tai's eyes darkened. That was what his dark side had told him Matt had said behind his back. _If he was right about that...was he right about the others too_. Tai questioned himself. His eyes started glowing red but he shook his head sternly and turned around and continued walking. "Do what you want, I'll be back later." he said to no one in particular.

Sora looked over at Matt. He, too, seemed baffled as to why Tai reacted that way.

"Tai's been insulted far worse than that, why did this affect him so much?" she asked Tar.

"I don't know. I don't think he's telling us something." Tar thought aloud. Then she walked over to Matt. "Why do you two always get into the stupidest arguments?" she yelled.

"Why are you yelling at me!" Matt yelled back.

"If Tai were here I'd be yelling at him too, but I want to know, What is it with the two of you!"

Matt was speechless. Was it that they were total opposites and didn't agree on certain things, was it that Tai didn't always think about entire situations, or was it something about himself...

The jeering voice of his dark side suddenly sprang in his mind. _Do you want their friendship? This lie that you're living? Or do you want to walk away from everything that has happened recently and return to your destroyed home and family that no longer exsists. _

Matt shook his head to clear the mocking voice.

"Matt! MATT!" Tar yelled.

"Wha-?" Matt asked, as though comming out of a dream.

"I asked what's with you two?" she repeated.

Matt rolled his eyes. "Nothing. He'll come back later like he said."

Tar looked like she still wanted to argue, but Sora stepped in the middle. "How about we rest while we wait for Tai to come back, since that's what the whole argument was about anyway."

They both nodded and looked over at Izzy, who sat leaning against the rock wall and typing furiously on his laptop, Mimi, who was fanning herself with a large leaf, Joe, who was complaining about how he sunburns easy, Meg, who was leaning against the wall with her eyes closed, and Tk and Kari who were still sleeping.

Matt nodded and joined the group, but Sora and Tar lingered back a bit. "Maybe you should go talk to Tai, and I'll talk to Matt." Tar offered.

Sora shook her head. "This is something they'll have to figure out for themselves. Besides, I doubt it'll turn into anything violent." (A/N: LOUD BUZZER NOISE WRONG! heehee) With that final statement they joined their group of friends.

Tai was gazing up at the afternoon sun. The warmth from it would've normally comforted him, but his mind was elsewhere. His thoughts were troubling him. He knew his friends wouldn't talk behind his back, but there was that small voice in the back of his mind (his dark side probably) that argued with him about that.

This not-knowing was troubling him so much that it was giving him a headache.

He rubbed his temples, but then a thought accured to him_. Maybe it's not just a headache_. He looked around him, but there was nothing unusual about his surroundings, well other than being so high up. _I'm just being paranoied_ he told himself.

"Long time no see, Tai." a cruel voice purred. Tai's head was hit with an immensly sharp pain. He looked over and saw none other than Gem causually leaning against the side of the cliff, the darkness around her still concealing what she truely looked like and her eyes were as red as ever.

"I haven't seen you since..." she chuckled darkly "...you destroyed my fortress on the Dark Continent." she said, her eyes narrowing into devilish slits.

"Now, you see, that wasn't my fault. I had nothing to do with your fortress collapsing. But I am glad that someone did." he said smirking.

"I'd wipe that smirk off your face if I were you. I could blow this mountain up in a matter of seconds, of course I'll be fine and so would you, but your friends won't." Gem snapped. "But I did not come here to argue. I need your help." she said smiling evilly.

"And why would I help you." Tai demanded.

"You don't have a choice." Gem stated wickedly. Tai suddenly felt someone grab his shoulders and shove him into the side of the cliff. The force of the push was so strong that Tai blacked out instantly.

"Is it just me, or has Tai been gone a while?" Kari asked. She and Tk had woken up shortly after Tai and Matt's fight and had regained most of their strength already.

Izzy and Mimi nodded in agreement.

"Maybe we should go look for him." Joe suggested. They had about 3 hours before sundown and still had half a mountain to climb.

Sora nodded. "I'm starting to get worried."

They all stood up and traced the steps Tai had taken earlier.

"Tai wouldn't have gone far, so he should be around here somewhere." Tar stated.

"Unless he..." Mimi started. looking over the cliff at the ground far below.

"Mimi, don't even say it." Sora said sternly.

At that moment they rounded a corner and saw something laying sprawled on the ground ahead of them.

"Is that..." Tk started.

"Tai!" Kari exclaimed. She started to run forward, but before she could reach him a black mist spiraled up from the earth and formed into the scariest figure she had ever laid eyes on.

Sora froze next to her. "Gem." she whispered, her voice shuddered with horror.

"_That's_ Gem." Joe repeated.

"Her power's far greater than our's Joe, I can almost physically feel it." Kari said.

Gem chuckled. "So, all Ten Sages. I was starting to wonder when we would all meet." She turned her attention to Sora and Meg. "Although some of you I've met before."

"What did you do to Tai!" Tar demanded.

Gem's deathly gaze turned to Tar. "Nothing...yet."

"Then what do you want with him?" Meg demanded.

"Oh...this time it's not _him_ I'm after." Gem clenched her fists and her eyes started glowing brighter. In a sudden gust of black magic all the Sages were thrown against the wall, all...but one.

"Matt!" Tk yelled. "We can't move."

Matt glanced from his trapped friends to Gem then back to his friends.

"What do you want with me?" he asked, trying to mask how nervious he was.

Gem took several bold steps forward. "Matt, you have more potential than you're letting on. So, what's holding you back? Is it these fools?" she asked looking over at the struggling group. "Is it Tai, your so-called leader?" She asked, motioning to the unconscious boy behind her. "Or...is it something else."

"Matt don't listen to her!" Meg yelled.

"Are you afraid Matt?" Gem continued. "Afraid that the power you posses could possibly endanger you or your friends. Are you afraid of the possibility that the crest you have isn't your's and that you will one day betray them."

"Matt, she's lying." Tar yelled.

Gem's narrow eyes narrowed further and she glared at the group on the wall.

"What makes you think that's what's going through my head?" Matt asked skeptically.

Gem smirked at his question. "I think our little conversation will be best discussed in private." She waved her hand and suddenly the whole cliff-side froze. The Sages were frozen in the positions they were in, birds that had been flying by had stopped in mid-air, their wings unmoving, time just seemed to stop all around the area.

Matt gazed around in confusion. "What did you do?"

"I manipulated the time stream. It's similar to your gift of time freezing." Meg explained. "But back to what I was saying earlier. Matt, your power is greater than most of your friends', what better way to use it than to help me."

"I wouldn't help you even if I did believe you." he snapped. "And if someone here is stronger than me, then why don't you ask them."

Meg's eyes flashed a brighter red. "I already have." she motioned to Tai. "But, I haven't had any luck in convincing him."

"So you turned to me," Matt stated, folding his arms over his chest.

"Your powers are almost identically matched...at the present time. But I didn't realize before how similar the two of us are." she said, almost apologetically.

Matt gave her another look of complete bewilderment.

"How else would I know what you're thinking. I was thinking the same thing when I first discovered my powers. But, I met someone, someone who taught me that power is something people kill for, and to have so much of it makes you...different, better. Tell me Matt, do you think you're better than all these 'Sages'."

Matt didn't even hesitate to answer her. "No, of course not. They're my friends and -"

"Friends? Are you sure? From where I'm standing you seem like the lone wolf of the group, the outcast. Are your bonds with them as great as their's are with each other?" Gem asked.

Matt was speechless. He couldn't be won over that easily, but her words made some sense. He _was_ always slightly away from everyone else, but he always thought his friendship with them was still strong.

Friendship, that word again. The one word Matt didn't understand too well. He knew what a friend was, but what he didn't know was if he was being one.

"Join me Matt." Gem's words immediately shook Matt from his thoughts. "You're uncertain about your friendships with the other Sages, but I'll swear on this mountain that I am a true friend to you." She offered her hand to him. "We wolves have to stick together, don't we?"

Matt looked at her outstretched hand, then back at his friends' frozen faces.

"Don't listen to her Matt." a weak voice stated.

Gem's eyes widened in complete shock. "H-How is this possible. How did you escape the time barrier?"

Tai rubbed th back of his head. "She has the gift of manipulation, she's manipulating you." he said to Matt, completely ignoring Gem's questions.

Matt looked from Gem to Tai. He jerked his hand away from her's and his eyes started glowing their icy blue. He used Gem's obvious shock to his advantage and formed a thick layer of ice around her, freezing her to the spot.

Tai stood up, he rotated one of his shoulders and shook his head before joining Matt.

"You alright?" Matt asked.

Tai nodded, but turned his attention to Gem who's eyes had already started to melt the ice around her face.

"Gem, we'll let you go, but only if you unfeeze them." Matt negotiated.

Tai looked like he wanted to protest, but realized it was probably the best thing to do.

The glowing in her eyes dimmed.

_"Fine! But you have to let me go first." _she hissed in Tai's head.

"No way Gem, You unfreeze them first." Tai replied.

"_Only if I have your word that you'll let me go." _she replied.

Tai shrugged. "Even if we don't melt you, the sun will...eventually." he smirked.

Gem seemed to consider his words for several moments, but as suddenly as they had been frozen, the other Sages started moving again... well, more like falling.

The Sages dropped from the wall in a large heap, all confused and wondering what they had missed.

"What happened?" Tk asked groggily.

Tai held one of his hands over the ice sculpture beside him, letting his firey aura cover it. In a few seconds Gem was back to her origional, evil, dangerous self.

She took several steps back. "I want you all to know, this is just the beginning." She gave them all a final glare, her eyes lingering on Tai and Matt longer than the rest, then she disappeared in a spiraling cloud of mist.

Tai sighed then turned to address his friends. "Guys, I think it's about time I told you what happened when I was taken to the Dark Continent, and also about my dreams."

_TTTTT Several hours later TTTTT _

The Sages were almost all the way to the top, although sunset had long since passed. But at the moment they didn't care; they were too exhausted to eat, and the only thing keeping them awake was Tai's voice.

The Sages had all walked in silence as they listened to Tai's experiences with the shadow girl Gem.

Besides the shuffling of their feet along the dirt trail and Tai's voice, no sound was made. The group was shocked at how a girl their age could command Piedmon, capture their parents, and who's mere pressence could send white hot pain through their friend.

Tai thought that they deserved to know everything he knew about her, so he even told them about her kissing him. Of course Sora looked about ready to kill someone when he mentioned it, but only Mimi and Tar noticed.

By the time he was finished, Piximon's house/mansion was in clear view. But although they were relieved that they didn't have to walk anymore, no one spoke.

Maybe it was the impact Tai's story made, whether it was saddness, anger, or disbelief.

Piximon greeted them at the door.

"Well, it's about time you Sages decided to show up." Piximon laughed.

"Sorry, we ran into some trouble along the way." Tai explained.

"Trouble? Oh yes, that shadow girl...Gem, right?" Piximon asked.

Everyone's eyes widened. "H-How did you know about her!" Joe asked.

"How? Hohoho. I know everything that goes on in my realm." Piximon chuckled.

"And you didn't help us!" Mimi yelled.

"Of course not. I wanted you to take care of her. Afetr all, I won't be there next time you meet her. But all it showed me was that you need a lot more training than I thought." Piximon said. "Well, I'll show you to your rooms. You will eat and then get some sleep. You'll need it. Tomorrow we begin your training."

"But...it's after sunset." Izzy pointed out.

"Yes, but I only said that so you would hurry up." Piximon laughed.

The Sages rolled their eyes but nodded and followed him to four different rooms.

"Here you are. The Ishidas will stay here, Kamiyas here, Takenouchi, Tachikawa, and Nosaki here, and Izumi and Kido here. (A/N: Yea...Meg's full name is Megumi Nosaki, kay )

The group nodded and went into their seperate rooms, none of them realized how exhausted they were until now. So as soon as they entered their rooms they crashed on their beds and fell asleep almost instantly, completely forgetting about dinner.

_TTTTT The Next Day TTTTT_

"I'm just going to get strait to the point, you're children. Immature and inexperienced children who have a very limited amount of knowledge about the present situation." Piximon stated as he paced the room in front of the Sages.

The Sages listened to Piximon drone on and on about how they were so unprepared and that he was there to teach them for what seemed like hours. It was very early in the morning, not even dawn yet, and they were to report straight to the training arena. They didn't even get a decent meal before going, and Mimi had a fit about not getting enough beauty sleep.

"Now, Miss Takenouchi, if I'm right, your dad was one of my trainees, right?" Piximon asked.

Sora had nearly fallen asleep and was now jerked awake by his question. She nodded her head quickly.

"Then I'm guessing he taught you all he knows right?" Piximon asked.

"Yes." Sora replied.

Piximon chuckled. "Then you know almost absolutly nothing." Sora gave him a confused stare. "You see Sora, your father was one of the worst students I've ever had the displeasure to teach. Haha, but I can tell that you're a much better warrior than him. You only know the basics though." Piximon stood up and motioned for Sora to do the same. "Now, I'm going to turn around and I want you to try and hit me."

Sora's eyes widened. "I'm not going to do that!" she exclaimed.

Piximon laughed again. "Don't worry, you won't hurt me, but I need you to try and hit me."

Sora glanced back at her friends and then sighed, defeated. "Alright,"

Piximon smiled and turned his back to her.

Sora waited several moments for the right time to attack. When she thought it was as good a time as any she thrust her fist at Piximon. Piximon suddenly reached behind him and grabbed her outstretched hand, he twisted it, and threw her to the ground.

"Tell me Sora, do you use your eyes to fight?" he asked innocently.

Sora gave him a look that said '"Duh Isn't it obvious'", but she simply replied "Yes."

Piximon plopped on the ground and grinned. "And that is where your training begins. As I'd like you all to know...sometimes your eyes get in the way. Your other senses; hearing, touching, smelling, are all equally as strong as sight. But they're not used as often. Now, the sense I'm using is the sixth sense; being able to sense things that your other senses arn't able to." He looked around the room. "You're the one gifted with the powerful sixth sense, am I right?" he asked Tai.

Tai nodded.

"Then I'd like you to come up here." Piximon commanded. He nodded to Sora, who sat down. He then scanned the room for a few seconds. "You, Matt, I'd like you to come up here also." he said to Matt, who also looked like he was falling asleep.

"Now, Tai, close your eyes, and keep them shut." Piximon said sternly. Tai did as he was told, not wanting to see the great trainer when he's angry. "Now Matt, I want you to try and hit Tai."

Matt looked at Piximon like he was crazy. "Do what?"

"Hit him. I know you two had lots of anger towards one another yesterday, so here's the perfect chance to get back at the other." Piximon said chuckling.

"So...you _want_ us to fight?" Tai questioned, opening one eye.

"Nope, if your sixth sense is as great as your ancestor's, then you won't have to worry about being hit at all." Piximon assured. "And keep your eyes shut!"

Tai nodded.

"Go on Matt." Piximon encouraged.

Matt glanced at Piximon, but realized he didn't really have a choice in the matter. So he clenced his fists and tried to punch him. But, even with his eyes shut, Tai was faster, and his hand grasped onto Matt's oncoming fist with a break-neck speed. He opened his eyes and saw Matt staring at him with disbelief.

Piximon grinned. "Very good. I'll admit I had my doubts, but you proved me wrong. But, since you already have the sixth sense gift, training with the other Sages won't do you much good. But...do you have your gift under control?"

"No, not really." Tai admitted.

"Alright then, Tai follow me, the rest of you stay here. I'll be back shortly." Piximon practically shoved Tai out the door.

When he was sure Piximon was out of earshot, Joe asked. "Is it just me, or does this feel like school?"

The group laughed at this, but it wasn't a sincere laugh, it was more nervous. They didn't know what was going to happen to them or Tai, and that bothered them. But the only real way to tell is by trusting Piximon enough to let him train them. But they weren't sure they could do that...just yet.

Piximon fluttered back into the room, when he saw all their worried faces he decided to put their minds at ease. "Don't worry Sages. Your friend is just a few doors away, he's in good hands. And you have to learn to trust me, otherwise I can't teach you to trust yourselves."

"We do trust one another." Tar objected.

Piximon scanned the group with his large eyes. "I'm not saying you don't trust one another, I'm saying you don't trust yourself and your powers. You can't say that there haven't been times when you've questioned your own abilities. Or your loyalty."

Matt was the only one who noticed Piximon's side glance in his direction.

"Piximon...it's kind of hard to think of ourselves as true Sages, since we have no idea why we were chosen to be them." Mimi explained.

"Yea, even if our ancestors were the previous weilders of the elements, what was keeping our parents or grandparents from becoming the Sages." Kari agreed.

"I'll explain everything tonight, when all of you are together. But now...you have to start your training. After all, that's why you came here." Piximon laughed.

The group was about to object and point out to him that it was _him _that brought them here, but Piximon waved a hand and several white portals appeared on the ground. Out of the portals came...the Dark Masters!

"Relax Sages, these are replicas of them, not the real things, but just as powerful and just as evil. I want to see what you can do against the powers of the Dark Masters, we'll start your training from there." Piximon explained. He sat himself on a comfortable looking mat while the Sages gawked at him.

_TTTTT Later that day (it's sunset) TTTTT_

Sora rubbed her cheek where Piedmon had cut her with one of his blades. Piximon's trainings were very brutal on all of them, but Piximon had made sure no serious injuries would occur. But if you made a costly mistake during battle you would get a cut or a painful bruise. They were designed to show them the consequences of their actions and give Piximon an idea of how pathetic they were. Sora didn't like them one bit.

"I'm exhausted." Mimi whined. "I can't believe he made us work from sun up to sundown."

"I know." Sora agreed. "How do you think Tai did?"

"Well, since none of us have any clue as to what he was doing, even if he was fighting or not, I can say...I have no idea Sora! How am I supposed to know!" Mimi said irritated. But as soon as she realized she had snapped at her best friend she quickly apologized. "I'm sorry Sora, It's just that...it's been a long day and..."

"It's alright Meems, I understand. And right after dinner you can sleep all you want." Sora said cheerfully.

"Yea...until Piximon wakes us up again." she replied, laughing.

The door to their room suddenly slid open and Tar was standing there. "Hey guys, mind if I join you?"

"Course not." Mimi gestered for her to sit on her bed next to her.

"Any word from Tai yet?" Sora asked.

Tar shook her head solemly. "I wonder what his training was like."

"Probably just as brutal as ours." Mimi stated bitterly.

A knock at their door interrupted their conversation. The door slid open, revealing Matt.

"Hey, Piximon wants us in the dining room, now."

The girls nodded and followed him outside, where everyone else was waiting.

Sora had to admit, they all looked alot better than they had yesterday. They had bathed recently, so all the desert dust was gone, and the thick lines under their eyes had shrunk enough so that they didn't look sleep deprived anymore, and their clothes were clean too.

The group walked in silence, each wondering what was waiting for them in the dining room. What truths would be unveiled.

They reached two large marble doors, a Gekomon stood in front of either door. They nodded their heads at the group and pulled the doors open.

"Okay, so Piximon has his own servants, but he couldn't provide transportaion up here." Joe asked irritatedly.

"Come in Sages, yep yep." Piximon greeted.

The dining room wasn't as breathtaking as some of the ones at the GL's palaces, but it was still very grand. There was a long table that could seat about 50 guests, candellabras lined the walls, giving a warm feeling to the room, elegant tapestries hung in between the candellabras, each showing a differnt event in time, but the ceiling was the best feature in the room. Clouds were painted all over the ceiling and, aligned in a circle, were 12 symbols, two were in the center of the of the circle. (A/N: sound familiar )

Already seated at the table, his eyes closed and his head resting on his palm, was Tai.

"Glad to see you're alright." Tar said when she was next to him.

Tai's eyes flew open. "You too." he replied.

"Looks like you came out better than we did." Sora said, noticing that he didn't have a scratch on him.

"I wouldn't say that." he replied, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Hey, that's my crest's symbol." Mimi said, pointing to the green teardrop on the ceiling. Everyone followed her gaze and the symbol she was pointing at, it was identical to the one that hung aorund her neck.

"And mine's next to it." Matt said, looking at the blue one to the left of Mimi's.

Piximon followed their gaze and smiled. "That painting was given to me by your grandparents. Each of those symbols is a crest's symbol."

"But...there are 12 there, and only ten of us." Tk observed.

"Good observation, and if you'll all take your seats I'll explain why." Piximon instructed.

The Sages filed into the chairs beside Piximon.

"Now, as you can probably figure out, the ring of symbols are the crests the ten of you possess, but the two in the middle are the two legendary crests. Choice and Life. I'm sure Genni told you about the village boy who was given the powers of Light, but he probably didn't tell you his title; the Heir of Light. But because he was such an immense concentration of power, the Dark God feared him.

The Goddess instructed Sincerity and Knowledge to go with the Heir to attack the God's primary location, the base where the Cursed Ones lived. It didn't take long for the battle to be over. With one powerful blast of magic from the Heir, the entire base was destroyed and everyone in it, which included War, Greed, Dispair, and Death.

Enraged by the deaths of his children, he demanded that the rest of them place all their dark powers into Lust, and he would do the same. But because they were 4 Cursed Ones short and the Darkness on Digitania wasn't as strong as the Light, Lust's power was only a fraction compared to the Heir's power. Lust was also given a new title: The Empriss of Darkness.

But because the Empriss's power was so small compared to the Heir's, she decided to use her gift to try and get him to join the dark side.

She nearly succeeded too. The capture of Courage and Love was used to barter their lives for the Heir's services. But luckily something happened to free them.

The moon symbol is the Heir's and the rose is the Empriss's.

I think the remainder of the story will be told to you by the remaining digimon gods."

The Sages had listened intensly to every word he said, it explained so much, but created more questions as well.

By now the Gekomon had brought out plates of food to enjoy during Piximon's history lesson, but so far they hadn't been touched.

"Piximon...that does help us understand more about what happened, but we still don't kno why _we're_ here." Izzy pointed out.

"Well, the main reason as to why you're here is because, according to theory, you ten are the Goddess's children reborn. After all, Ebonwumon did say you looked exactly like them. But another reason we knew was that the Sages were to have a vision on the eve of their 7th birthday. All ten of them were supposed to. And the ten visions would fit together like a puzzle to form an ancient prophecy." Piximon explained.

"So...dreams?" Kari asked.

"Yep, yep. All ten of you had a dream that fit this prophecy:

_**With the Silver Moon in full alight**_

_**Ten great souls will vanish from sight**_

_**Leaving behind Ten Eggs of power**_

_**Which causes their enimies to cower**_

_**All the elements combine as one**_

_**A shining new era has begun**_

_**A friend turns foe before their eyes**_

_**Revealing all her heinous lies**_

_**Risking all to save love's life**_

_**The Grim Reaper swings his silver scythe**_

_**But three words alter the course of fate**_

_**Bringing her love back from the pearly gates**_

_**A being bearing all the Goddess's might**_

_**The Prince of Digitania. The Heir of Light**_

This prophecy was predicted by the Ancients." Piximon concluded.

"Well, that does explain why we were chosen, but..." Sora started.

"Why were we assigned the Crests we have?" Matt finished.

"The Crests, which are like your power activators, run in your blood. But they also are based on your greatest trait." Piximon explained.

Matt clapsed his hand around his crest when Piximon said that.

"Now, it's getting late. You still have training tomorrow, only tomorrow we'll work with your elements. Now, get some sleep, and I'll see you up bright and early."

The group nodded and retreated into Tai, Tar, and Kari's room.

"So, what do you think about Piximon's 'theory'?" Tai asked when everyone had gathered in their room.

"It makes sense...it does explain why we were chosen." Sora said.

"Yea, but what about that prophecy?" Meg asked.

"I downloaded it to my computer...some parts I can figure out, but others...we need more information." Izzy replied.

"Which parts can you decipher?" Matt asked.

"The "ten eggs of power" are probably the gardians, which would explain why their enimies would cower. If all the elements combined as one, the present Heir of Light would be back, so a shining new era would begin. And risking all to save Love's life...I'm guessing that whoever gets the crest of Love will be in danger, and, I think, the future Heir of Light will save her, and end up getting killed, which would explain the Grim Reaper part, but three words save him. But I don't know those words...nor do I know who the crest of Love belongs to. So we're still pretty much in the dark." Izzy said.

The group groaned in frustration.

"The closer we get to an answer, the farther it takes us." Joe stated.

"Makes you wonder if we'll ever figure out this whole ordeal." Tar said.

"Well...at least tomorrow we'll be working to improve our control over the elements." Mimi said optomistically.

"Speaking of training...how did your's go today?" Kari asked Tai.

"Just thinking about it makes my head hurt." Tai said laughing. "But it did help, I have more control over my gift, so hopefully next time Gem shows up I'll be able to fight back."

"At least _you_ had some success." Izzy laughed.

Tai cocked his head slightly.

"We had to try and fight off the Dark Masters, but..." Sora started.

"We definatly need this training." Meg giggled.

"Well the training tomorrow should benefit us." Joe stated.

"Yea, especially after what happened in the Labyrinth. I guess our elements can work together as well as against each other." Tk mused.

"Yea...but we better get some sleep, or we'll be as tired as we were today." Kari stated.

The Sages choursed good night to one another before going into their seperate rooms.

_TTTTT Deep in Wicked Woods (near the Glacier, so on the other side of the mt. from the Sages ) TTTTT_

"How can those dumb children completely vanish from my scanners!" Puppetmon demanded. He slammed his wooden hand on the armrest of his chair.

"Don't worry my lord Puppetmon," Kiwimon said with a bow of his head, "We lost them in the desert, they can't be far from there."

"Well, you guys better find them! In order for my plan to work we need to know where they are. As soon as they enter the boundries of the glacier I need to know!" Puppetmon exclaimed.

"I understand my leige." Kiwimon said, bowing his head again. Puppetmon waved his hand to dismiss him and Kiwimon left without another word.

"Cherrymon." Puppetmon said, his voice back to it's normal volume.

Out of the shadows of Puppetmon's throne room came the creaking sound of old wood, and a giant walking tree stepped into the dim light. "You called sir."

"Cherrymon, you are my most trusted minion. I have a job for you." he said, hopping off his throne.

"What kind of job?" Cherrymon asked.

"There is a Sage...a Sage who doubts his crest. He wonders if his friendships are true, and if he deserves them. He already has a very rocky relationship with one of the Sages, and the best way to solve rocky relationships is...to break them." Puppetmon explained.

"So, you want me to convince him to...break...this rocky friendship he has." Cherrymon confirmed.

"Yes. It will provide great entertainment for me, plus it will get the two strongest Sages out of the way when I find and destroy them."

Cherrymon nodded. "Just who is this Sage?"

Suddenly Kiwimon ran into the throne room. "Master, we've found them. They're in Piximon's lair."

Puppetmon chuckled darkly. "Excellent. Now Cherrymon get over there, I'll be there after we figure out how to get through that barrier. Oh, and your target is...the Sage of Ice."

_TTTTTT Back at Piximon's TTTTT (A/N: okay, this is about...4 days later. When they're starting to get the hang of using their powers together. If I did the other three days then it would make this chapt REALLY long. And I KNOW most of you guys like long chapts. but let's just say...this chapt isn't even halfway there yet, lol, okay, so anywayz...) _

"Alright Sages. Today I've decided to challenge each of you. I want to see which of you have really learned the true potential of the your elements have." Piximon announced. "So the ten of you will be spread around my realm. Once you are there, you must rely on your training and abilities to get you back here. You will be alone, you won't have your friends to help you if you get in a bad situation. You will also face challanges based on what you can expect to find when you leave here in a few days. This challenge is to test you, through mind, body and skill.

One more thing. During this test your friends are as much your enemies as anything else you may encounter, so you may have to fight them in order to get back here.

The ones who reach here first will prove that they have mastered their power. This shows so much more than you may believe." Piximon concluded. "But before you go. I do want to tell you one thing. The Ten of you have worked hard and it shows more and more each day, and no matter what the turn-out of this challenge may be, you have all earned my respect and trust. I truly believe you _are _the Ten Legendary Sages. Now, good luck to you." he said, he pulled out his spear and tapped it on the ground. The Sages disappeared in a swirl of white light. "And may the better Sage win!"

_TTTTT Matt TTTTT_

Matt reappeared at the edge of the forest. He glanced behind him and saw the desert_. I'm at the very edge of Piximon's realm _he realized. He let out a small sigh, it was a long journey from here even with magic. He walked briskly through the trees, looking up at the towering mountain far ahead. He wondered if the others were as far away as he was.

"Snap" several twigs broke. Matt spun around, his eyes glowing.

"Who's there." he demanded.

No response.

"I said who's there." he repeated, his fists started glowing.

"Alright kid, relax." said an old voice. It sounded hollow, almost like the wind whispering through the leaves of a dead tree.

But to Matt's surprise that was exactly what it was. A tree had actually stepped out of the forest.

"Annnnd you would be..."

"I am Cherrymon." he replied.

"And what do you want?" Matt asked, he was a little suspicious of this digimon and decided to stay weary of him.

"Nothing, I'm just passing though, or is that against the law. And what might you be doing all the way out here?" he asked casually.

"That's none of your business." Matt stated.

"Geez kid, I'm just trying to be friendly. What's the matter? Don't have any friends?" the digimon asked.

"Of course I have friends." Matt snapped.

The digimon studdied his face for a few seconds. "You sure? Looks to me like you have some doubt about that."

Matt didn't say anything.

"You wouldn't happen to be one of those...Sages? Would you?" Cherrymon asked.

"What makes you say that?" Matt asked.

"The glowing eyes kind of gave me a hint." he replied. "But relax kid. I'm just an old digimon passing through, but I still want to know why you're out here by yourself. Rumor has it that all the Sages are back together, so why are you alone?"

Matt averted his eyes away from the digimon. "I...just...needed to get away from the others."

"Oh. You know, growing up with several brothers and sisters, I know what it's like to get sick of the people around you." Cherrymon said.

"I'm not sick of all of them, I'm just not used to being in a large group or taking orders from our self-proclaimed leader." Matt said with a roll of his eyes. "But why am I telling you all this." he asked as he started to turn around and walk away.

"Because I'm a digimon who doesn't know you or any of the other Sages, therefore won't judge you, and I'm always willing to lend a listening ear, which, by my guess, is all you need to help get rid of dark emotions." Cherrymon stated, placing the tip of his cane on the ground and leaning on it.

Matt looked at the digimon, "Thanks, but I don't need pity."

"I'm not saying you do, but maybe all you _do_ need is a chance." Cherrymon stated.

Matt turned to look at the digimon.

"Look into this pool," Cherrymon motioned to the pond behind him. "The vision you see is the only thing standing in your way from what you really want."

Matt looked at him, then at the pond. He didn't trust this digimon, but it wouldn't hurt just to look into the pond and see what the tree was talking about. He knelt on the ground and peered into the shimmering surface. Ripples started forming in front of him and the water shimmered until an image was visable.

The moment Matt saw the image he burst out laughing. "You've got to be kidding me. Tai. Yea, right." he started walking away, his laughter echoing around him.

"Sage, I can tell just by looking at you that you are a slight rebel and don't follow orders well, and you shouldn't have to. This leader of your's doesn't seem to care about that, does he?"

Matt's laughter stopped. What Cherrymon said had some truth to it.

"What you want is a chance. You want to show everyone that your ideas are better than his." Cherrymon continued.

Matt turned around completely. "I know Tai can be a little hot-headed and acts without thinking, but for the most part he's been a good leader."

"But you would make a better one. You _do_ think about situations instead of acting on impulse. Face it, you two are as different as the elements you have control over. Fire and Ice." Cherrymon stated.

Matt considered his words for a moment. "Tai's my friend, and I-"

"Friend? I thought you were the one who didn't know what friendship meant. How can you call a person your friend if you don't want their friendship to begin with?" Cherrymon asked.

Matt gazed back into the pond, Tai's face still shimmered on it's surface. He suddenly remembered all the times Tai's rash thinking had gotten them in danger. He felt a black hole appear where his heart had been.

"What should I do?" he asked.

"Get rid of Tai. He's more trouble than he's worth, and you will lead the Sages to victory against the Dark Masters." Cherrymon concluded.

"Get...rid...of him." Matt repeated. His eyes suddenly turned dark grey and he turned around and left Cherrymon where he stood.

Cherrymon smirked at the boy's reaction.

"Master Puppetmon. The Sage of Ice is going after the Sage of Fire, the plan is working." he said into the air.

"Good, now the fun begins." Puppetmon dropped out of the trees and landed in front of Cherrymon. "Let's go watch the battle begin."

"Master Pupptmon, I think I should warn you about something. You see, they have something you don't that could affect your entire plan and I-"

"WHAT! Are you saying those brats have something I don't! What could they possibly have that I don't!" Puppetmon demanded.

"Forgive me Puppetmon, but I really think you should-"

"Oh so now you're telling me what to do." Puppetmon's eyes narrowed. He raised his hammer above his head and slammed it on Cherrymon. "Nobody tells me what to do! PUPPET PUMMEL!"

The force of the attack instantly shattered Cherrymon's data and he shimmered into non-exsistance.

Puppetmon chuckled darkly before jumping back into the treetops and following the Sage of Ice.

_TTTTT Joe TTTTT_

"I finally start getting the hang of my powers and what does Piximon do...drop me in a desert." Joe stated irritated.  
He was walking angrily through the desert sand, his sights set on the large mountain in the distance.  
He kept walking, but the clouds of dust made it difficult to see, and the desert sun was beating down on him harshly.  
He stopped, his better judgement kicking in. _If I keep going on like this then I'll get dehidrated, and being the Sage of Water...that might not be a good thing. There's got to be a faster way out of this desert.  
_He gazed at his surroundings, looking for anything he could use.  
"Ugh! The only thing I can think of doing is getting the sand wet." he rolled his eyes.  
"Well, your idea isn't much better than mine." a familiar voice laughed behind him.

Joe spun around. "Tar! What are you doing here!" he exclaimed.

"Did you forget already?" she asked jokingly.

Joe rolled his eyes. "No. I mean I thought we were supposed to be seperated."

"We were." Tar replied. "I came from that way," she motioned to the direction her back was facing, which was the opposite way Joe had come.

"Well, aren't we supposed to fight or something?" Joe asked nervously.

Tar considered his question before answering. "Yes, but I don't see why we have to right now. There's still a long journey to the mountain, and I don't see why we should have to walk alone."

Joe nodded in agreement. "So...to get there faster...can you just...use that shadow teleport thing you can do?"

Tar shook her head. "That's how I got here so fast, which, as you can see, isn't really far at all. And I don't want to waste all my magic just getting there."

Joe moaned. "More walking."

Tar laughed. "Let's just hope the others arn't doing any better."

_TTTTT Sora TTTTT_

Sora was running as fast as her legs would take her through the rocky landscape Piximon left her in.

"Great. How do I fight an enemy that wind doesn't affect. Or worse than that, makes him stronger." she asked herself

She was being persued by a firey digimon, Meramon, and with each gust of wind she threw at him he either shrugged it off or absorbed it to become even stronger.

"BURNING FIST!" the digimon cried.

A fireball whizzed over Sora's head, but she ducked before it could cause any damage.

_If only I could find some water_. she thought desperately_. Where's Joe when you need him?_

She skidded around another turn used to throw off Meramon, but what she saw before her was almost as frightning as the digimon behind her. Trees. She had reached the jungle, but with a fire digimon on her tail she knew that it wouldn't be long before the whole jungle burst into flames.

She began looking around, searching for something that would help her stall Meramon. She looked up and saw the cliff that she had used to escape Meramon's line of fire, but what sat at the top was what caught her eye.

Positioned perfectly on the top of the cliff sat a very large boulder.

She clenced her fists and thrust two large whirlwinds toward the boulder. The wind slowly began picking the rock from the ground, and she felt her eyes get a few degrees warmer.

Meramon was almost positioned beneath the rock that was now hovering in mid-air.

"BURNING FIST!" he cried. Sora dropped the rock and it landed on Meramon with bone-crushing force, but she had been hit too. Meramon's attack had slammed into her shin, she was certain that it would start bleeding, but there was no time to stop and make sure it was okay. The boulder had only stalled Meramon, and she needed to find water to defeat him.

She took off running into the jungle, wincing at the pain in her leg, but trying her best to ignore it.

She risked a glance to her right and saw flames licking the branches. She didn't have long to spare, she had to do something to stop Meramon fast.

_TTTTT Kari TTTTT _

Kari was walking calmly through the jungle, taking in the sceanery and all the colors and plants. She was in no rush to get to Piximon's home. She didn't need to win a dumb test that forced all her friends to battle one another just to know that she was skilled in her powers. She wasn't as competitive as her siblings were, and decided that when she reached Piximnon's, whether she was first or last, that was that and there was no going back to change it.

No matter who won, they all had worked extreamly hard and had finally mastered their powers...for the most part.

She paused for a moment, she couldn't see the montain through the thick trees above her, so she wasn't sure if she was even going in the right direction.

She glanced to her right and saw a sturdy looking tree that stretched over the tops of most of the remaining trees.

Without a moment's hesitation she grasped the lowest branch and swung herself upward. It didn't take her long to be able to poke her head through the leaves and branches and find where she was.

She growled to herself. It was a pretty far distance from where she was, and even if she wasn't bent on winning she still wanted to get back before dark, especially since she was alone.

_I wish Tk was here, then we could teleport, or at least I would have someone to talk with. _she found herself thinking. Tk...now he was a subject she didn't always want to think about. He always seemed so cool and collected, and it was always a heart-stopping experience to have a normal conversation with him. She always fumbled with what to say to him, or would end up stuttering and embarrasing herself in front of him.

When she was younger she didn't have this problem. The two of them could talk for hours and not worry about making a fool out of themselves.

Sometimes she missed those days, back when everything wasn't so complicated.

But Tk was almost as important to her as Tai and Tar were.

Always looking out for her and there for her at a moment's notice, they were the best older siblings anyone could ask for, and she cherished every moment she shared with them.

All in all, she was very lucky. She was surrounded by friends who cared about her, carried a great gift and an awesome power, and had a family that would risk everything for her safety.

After dwelling in her thoughts she decided to climb down and get back to walking, she still had a long way to go.

She had almost reached the ground when the branch beneath her broke and she found herself struggling to keep her balance. She lost it, and began toppling to the ground, but instead of hitting the ground or even something hard she felt herself fall on something...or someone.

"Matt! Oh no, I'm sorry." she apologized after realizing who she had fallen on. She instantly offered him her hand, but he glared at her instead. He ignored her hand as well as her apology and picked himself off the ground without giving her a second glance.

She watched his back for a moment, completely bewildered with his actions.

"Hey Matt, wait." she called after him. She rushed to his side and began walking with him. "I didn't hurt you did I?"

Matt didn't respond, he just continued walking, his eyes set on something.

Kari found his behavior very unlike him. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"Fine." he stated firmly, as if trying to assure her he was fine and for her to stop following him. But although Kari heard his tone she was determined to stay with him. _Something's not right._ she realized. She had known Matt practically her whole life and he never talked to her with such aggression. There was something wrong with him. She could almost physically feel it radiating from him.

He gave her a side glare and stopped. "Why are you following me?" he demanded.

"Because you're my friend and-"

Matt's eyes blazed at the sound of that word. "My friend huh?"

Kari was taken aback by how angry he looked. "Yes, of course I'm your friend." She was certain now that something was seriously wrong with him. "Matt, what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing." he said fiercly.

She bravely stepped in front of him to keep him from walking. "Stop lying Matt. Something's wrong with you and I can feel it, and I'm not going to move out of the way and let whatever's happened to you hurt you or the others."

"Kari, move out of the way. This has nothing to do with you." Matt stated.

"Matt, we're a team, everything has to do with me and you." she said, trying to calm her temper (A/N: You know...Kari never has a temper...but i bet when she DOES get mad it's pretty scary ).

Matt's eyes narrowed further. "Fine, if that's the way you want it then I'll just have to move you myself."

He grasped her shoulders and shoved her against a tree, Kari shivered under his grasp, his hands were so cold. Suddenly ice began creeping up her arms and stomache. She looked at Matt in alarm, but he was already walking again.

"You're just going to leave me here!" she exclaimed.

Matt didn't even pause and neither did the ice. It slowly engulfed her from her stomache to her shoulders before stopping.

_What on Digitania is wrong with him_? she asked herself, but she quickly decided to push those questions to the back of her mind. At the moment she had more pressing matters to deal with. Like how to melt a foot of ice.

_TTTTT Mimi TTTTT_

"You think this is funny Piximon! My clothes are ruined! My hair is beyond repair! And I'll never be able to wear these shoes again!" Mimi screeched.

She was standing in waist-high mud with no sign of dry land anywhere. A Marsh, just her luck.

"I bet you planned this from the beginning you little cream puff! Just wait until I get back...oooooh you'll be sorry!" she yelled at the air.

(A/N: lol, i can just picture Piximon sitting on a chair watching this and laughing his head off saying. "Yep yep, of course i think this is funny, lol)

She took two tentitive steps forward, being extra careful not to slip and fall in.

She groaned, this was getting her nowhere, she needed a cleaner, faster way across the marshes.

She stood in the mud for a moment, trying to devise a way across when an idea hit her.

She clenced her fists and in seconds the mud began glowing bright green until numerous thick green vines shot from wherever they had been resting and twined together to form a long bridge. Mimi grinned in self-victory as she lifted herself from the tar-like mud and began walking down her new dry path.

After about an hour's worth of walking she managed to clear her outfit of most of the mud that had lingered on it and she made herself look nearly presentable, plus she got to boast that she only fell twice during the entire experience. She jumped off her bridge and onto dry soil. A dark creepy forest that she couldn't see through was what was waiting for her.

She groaned as she looked up and saw the mountain in that very direction.

"Ohhh, I don't care about this test anymore, I just want to get back and take a hot bath." she complained.

She glanced around one last time, searching for anymore options, saw none, and began walking into the dark forest.

It didn't take long for the sun to be completely blocked out by the darkness in the forest, but she pressed on, eager to reach the other end and enjoy a bath and a good night's sleep.

But the farther she walked into the forest, the darker and spookier it became. It was so dark that she couldn't see her hand in front of her face.

"Now I don't even know if I'm going the right way," she realized " I could be walking in circles for all I know." Just as she said that, her foot got caught something and she found herself falling forward. She growled in frustration as she picked herself off the ground.

"The world's just out to get me today isn't it." she said angrily.

"Mimi?" a voice called through the darkness.

She lifted her head and saw a small light coming towards her. "Tk?" she asked.

"Mimi, are you alright" Tk asked as he moved some branches to reveal himself.

"Yes...well no, let's just say Piximon's not going to be happy when we get back." she said ginning innocently.

Tk laughed. "Well, come on, the mountain's this way."

"Good." Mimi stated

_TTTTT Izzy TTTTT_

"I'm a man of computers and technology, I don't need excersise!" Izzy growled as he gazed around. He was on an island in the middle of a lake.

He knew that his powers were of no use here unless he wanted to electricute himself.

"Think Izzy think, there has to be a way across without worrying about drowning." he thought furiously.

He looked around but there were no trees that he could use as boats, in fact, he was really the only thing on the tiny isle.

He was beginning to consider swimming across when a figure cuaght his eye.

"Meg!" he realized. "Meg! MEG!" he yelled.

Meg was walking briskly through the...wherever she was. She had been on the look out for any of the Sages, but so far no luck.

_Meg! MEG!_

"Ugh, what is that annoying sound?" she asked angrily. She stopped and began looking up at all the trees, searching for a bird or something that could be making that tiny, but incredibly annoying sound.

"MEG!" Izzy yelled again. He got her to stop, but he needed her to look over at him. He began jumping around and flailing his arms in the air. (A/N: heehee, could u imagine Izzy doing that, lol, it makes me laugh just thinking about it)

Meg's peripheral vision caught something at the corner of her eye. She turned to find what it was and found herself looking out onto a beautiful lake with a small island in the center and...something jumping around waving it's hands in the air. Meg squinted her eyes and after a moment realized that it was Izzy.

She smiled and waved at him.

_Yes! _Izzy thought triumphantly when he saw her turn to him. He pointed to himself and the water, trying to signal that he needed help getting across.

Meg watched him for a second, trying to understand what his actions ment. "Izzy! This is no time to go swimming!" she yelled.

Izzy groaned and slapped his hand on ihs forehead. "I can't get across!" he yelled.

"What about moss?" she yelled back

"I CAN'T GET ACROSS!" he yelled louder.

"Oh. Why didn't you say so in the first place?" she yelled back.

Izzy was going to reply, but decided against it

Meg's black aura formed around her as she thrust her hands in front of her, a black path suddenly began crawling over the lake and towards Izzy.

Izzy sighed with relief before running across the magic based path.

"Thanks." he said when he made it acrosss.

"No problem." she replied. "How long have you been over there?"

"Since the test started." Izzy stated.

"Wow, impressive. But we'd better hurry, the others might already be there." Meg said.

"I'm just glad I got off that island." Izzy stated laughing. "Whre did you come from?"

She shivered, "The glacier. You know what I've been thinking: Piximon's realm is like a miniture version of Digitania."

"I noticed the same thing. I bet it's for training in all the different elements." Izzy thought aloud.

Meg nodded in agreement as they continued/started their quest.

_TTTTT Tai TTTTT_

Tai was walking calmly towards the mountain, he wasn't in any real rush since he was about halfway there already.

He sighed as he placed his hands behind his head. It was extreamly boring without having anyone to talk to.

So far he hadn't come across _anything _interesting, nothing to battle, no obstacles to avoid, just walking walking and more walking. He groaned and looked up at the sky, even the sky was...smokey?

He stopped short and gave what was supposed to be a blue sky the strangest look he could muster. Being the Sage of Fire made him immediatly suspicious_. A little detour won't change the outcome of who wins_. he thought shrugging.

He rushed towards the area where the smoke was rising, but as he neared his destination he suddnely got dizzy. He stopped and leaned against a tree. Thanks to Piximon's 6th sense lessons he wasn't getting those sharp pains in his head all the time, but he still wasn't in complete control of his gift, his crest would help with that though. So now he was recieving dizzy spells, well...depending on which villan he was facing.

Piximon had set up a simulation for each of the Dark Masters. Each had a different evil ranking, so each had different effects on him.

Piedmon and Myotismon were far more evil than the others, therefore they still provided a great deal of pain, but Puppetmon, for instance, gave him more of a hollow feeling, like emptiness and dizziness. Lady Devimon and Devimon gave him headaches, while Machinedramon was numbing, and Piximon didn't even bother training him with Metal Seadramon, who they had deleted.

He narrowed his eyes and looked around. Puppetmon was the only one who's presence made him dizzy_. But how could any of the Dark Masters get in here_? Tai asked himself. He started running towards the smoke, he was getting the feeling that something wasn't right here, and it had nothing to do with the test.

He skidded to a hault when he reached a clearing. A wall of fire had made it's way completely around the clearing, except the way he came through it, but that wasn't what made him stop.

"Matt!" he yelled in relief.

Matt was standing in the center of the clearing, his fists clenched and his eyes steely.

Tai ran over to him. "Come on man, we've got to get out of here." he said looking around.

Matt didn't budge, which extreamly bewildered Tai.

"We? There is no we. Only one of us is getting out of here alive." Matt stated.

"What? Matt what the heck are you talking about?" Tai asked.

Matt smirked, a cold blooded smirk. "Your leadership days are over, the others won't have to suffer because of you anymore." Matt opened his hand and four dart-like ice crystals went flying towards Tai.

Tai dove for the ground and they barely missed him.

"Matt what's wrong with you." he demanded as he slowly lifted himself off the ground.

Matt completely ignored his question and formed two thick icicles in his hand. He threw them at his opposite with as much force as he could muster.

Tai didn't have time to duck, so he shot two streams of flames out of his palms, melting the ice before they came too close.

"Matt, we're supposed to be fighting the Dark Masters, not each other." he said angrily. The dizziness had returned and he wasn't sure how long he could hold off Matt when he felt like collapsing.

Matt wasn't listening, he ran towards Tai and tried to punch him directly in the jaw, but Tai grasped his wrist. Though Matt must've been two steps ahead, he kicked Tai roughly in the shin. But Tai wasn't so easily defeated, he clutched Matt's wrist tighter and threw him to the ground with all his strength. He grabbed his shirt and glared at him.

"Matt quit acting like an idiot, we've got to find the others." he yelled.

Matt glared at him with the coldest stare he could manage. He grabbed his shoulders and forced Tai to the ground. He created an ice dagger the length of his fore arm and pointed it at Tai's neck.

Tai felt a sharp pain stab him, not physically, but mentally. There was a darkness around, a strong one, and he knew it was Matt. He had to be possessed or something...at least that's what Tai was hoping. He shut his eyes tightly and the dagger melted in seconds.

He kicked him in the stomache to get him off him and they both jumped to their feet.

_I've got to get through to him, otherwise he could kill me or he'll die in the flames_. he realized as he glanced around at the flames, which were inching closer every second.

_TTTTT Tar and Joe TTTTT_

"Joe come on!" Tar yelled behind her.

"Can't we rest for a minute?" he asked.

"Can't you see that smoke? The others could be in there somewhere! We've got to get over there and see what's happened." she yelled, slightly exasperated.

"Alright, alright. But could you at least make transportation a little easier? More than likely you won't need to worry about battling the others anymore." Joe said.

Tar stopped and debated the pros and cons of this suggestion. "...Fine." she said with a roll of her eyes, finally giving in to Joe's begging.

She grabbed his hand and her eyes regained their ghostly glow. The two of them suddenly vanished and only their shadows remained. Their shadows began racing across the desert sands, straight toward the smoking trees ahead.

They continued racing through the trees until they noticed something that caught their attention.

_Was that Sora_? Joe mentally asked Tar.

_Yea, come on, let's go back_. she replied.

They spun around and reappeared in front of Sora.

Sora let out a quick yelp of surprise. "Where did you two come from?" she asked, her hand over her heart in an attempt to calm it's racing.

"From the desert, but what's causing all that smoke?" Tar asked.

Sora looked guiltily behind her at the rising smoke.

"A Meramon attacked me earlier, and I...sort of...led him toward the edge of the forest. I managed to destroy him, but I can't stop the fires." she said nerviously.

"Is anyone in there?" Joe asked.

Sora shook her head. "I don't know."

Tar took a deep breath. "I'll check." She used her powers once again and disappeared. Her shadow began racing towards the flames while Joe and Sora waited anxiously for her return.

"Well?" Sora asked when Tar was back.

Tar was panting and looked paler than normal. "I-I saw Matt and Tai."

"What!" Sora cried.

"Well, are they okay?" Joe asked nerviously.

Tar shook her head "They were fighting."

"Again," Joe said with a roll of his eyes. "In the middle of a blazing fire!"

Tar shook her head, trying to regain her lost breath. "Something's wrong. I watched for a second...Matt looked like he was _trying _to hurt Tai."

Sora and Joe glanced at one another and began racing into the burning jungle.

"Tar, Stay there!" Sora called over her shoulder.

Tar watched them until they vanished from sight. The only thought running through her mind was _What is going on?_

_TTTTT Mimi and Tk TTTTT_

"Tk, do you think we're almost there?" Mimi asked.

"I'm not sure." Tk admitted. "But hey, I think I see light up ahead!" he said excitedly.

Mimi and Tk began running toward the light in the distance, eager for the sunlight they had been deprived of since they entered the forest.

Tk was the first to reach the end and he smiled as he looked up at the blue sky.

"Hey Meems, we're almost there! Look!" he said, pointing to the mountain which was towering above them.

Mimi smiled brightly, her usual cheeriness returning.

"Do you think any of the others are there yet?" she asked.

"Maybe." Tk shrugged.

Just as they began to get close to the mountain something totally unexpected happened.

"BANG!"

Piximon's house at the top suddenly exploded.

Mimi and Tk stood horror-struck at what had just happened, but their shock was interrupted when they had to dive for cover from falling debries.

"T-That...didn't...just happen...did it?" Mimi asked, trying to sort out fiction from reality in her mind.

Tk was too shocked to speak.

"Oh...my...Goddess." Mimi whispered over and over.

"D-Do you think...Piximon is...alright?" Tk asked slowly, his eyes still glued on where Piximon's home had been moments ago.

Mimi looked over at Tk. He looked tramatized, she knew they had to get reunited with the others and tell them what had happened.

"I-I don't know." she said quickly, trying to regain herself . "But we have to go. Whatever caused this might still be lurking around."

Tk looked at her, then the mountain, debating on what to do.

She grabbed his arm and began walking swiftly in the opposite direction_. Hopefully we'll run into them sooner or later. _she thought optomistically.

_TTTTT Meg and Izzy TTTTT_

_"_Did you see that too, or have I gone insane?" Meg asked Izzy hesitantly. They were getting closer to the mountain when she had looked up and saw the house explode before her very eyes.

For the first time in his life Izzy was speechless.

"Come on!" she yelled, making a run for the smoke they had been previously following.

_I just hope no one was in there _she thought.

Izzy was running behind her, but his thoughts were so shocked by what he had just wittnessed that his brain felt fuzzy. He probably couldn't come up with the answer to 2+2 at that moment.

He was basically running blindly, just following Meg wherever she was going, that's why he ran straight into her when she stopped.

"Kari?" he heard Meg say with confusion.

"Meg!" Kari exclaimed. "Izzy! Man am I glad to see you."

"How did you get...uh...frozen to this tree?" Izzy asked, finally finding words to form a sentence.

"Matt." Kari said simply.

"What?" Meg and Izzy said in unsion.

"I don't have time to explain, but I think he's in trouble." Kari said.

Meg rushed to her side and began to tear away at the ice with her powers.

"What kind of trouble?" Izzy asked.

"Something's wrong with him. I think a darkness has found it's way into him and is using him to break us up." Kari explained.

"But how?" Meg asked.

"I don't know," Kari admitted.

Meg jerked her hands toward herself and the ice shattered.

"Thanks." Kari said gratefully.

Meg nodded.

"Have you seen any of the others?" Kari asked curiously.

"No. You're the first we've seen since this test started." Izzy replied.

"I don't think this is a test anymore." Meg stated.

"Why do you say that?" Kari asked.

"If something evil is happening to Matt, I doubt Piximon has anything to do with it, nor do I think he would blow up his own house." Meg replied.

"What?" she asked when she heard the last part.

Izzy pointed to the top of the mountain, where Piximon's home should have stood proud and tall, but now there were only ruins.

Kari looked at it with shock.

"And Piximon?" she asked anxiously.

"We don't know." Izzy said sadly.

"But we can't dwell on what we don't know." Meg said. "We have to find the other Sages. Where do you think they are?"

Izzy thought about it for a moment. "I bet most of them would've followed that smoke trail. After all that's what we were doing."

Kari followed his gaze and saw the smoke. "What's causing it?" she asked.

"We don't know." Izzy stated. "That's one reason why we were following it."

Kari nodded in agreement. "Alright, let's go." She took off running with Meg and Izzy close behind.

_TTTTT Tai and Matt TTTTT_

Tai was so exhausted he couldn't move. His elbows were providing the only leverage he had as he laid on the ground. Matt continued throwing blow after blow, each one seeming more powerful than the last. But the dizzy spells and the mental pain Matt was causing was beginning to take it's toll on him.

Plus, Matt was attacking him, and he was trying not to fight, which upset the balance between the two fighters. Matt wasn't sevearly injured at all, he had a few cuts and several bruises were beginning to color, but other than that he was fine. Tai, on the other hand, had several wounds that could take a while to heal, and he was certain his ankle was broken.

He wasn't sure how much longer he could **not** fight.

He watched Matt, not letting his guard down for a second. If he had to he would use his fire magic on him. He had no other choice really. He tried to talk with him, but that only led to both of them getting hurt, and he wouldn't run from a fight, even if he were dying.

Matt glared at the determined eyes before him.

_Finish him! _a voice provoked.

Matt held his arm out and a spear of dark ice formed in his open hand.

Tai narrowed his flame colored eyes and Matt dropped the spear with a sinister hiss.

Matt looked at his hand, a burn began creeping up his skin which was glowing in the firelight that had encircled them.

"Well well well, you've got some fight left in you after all." Matt said smirking. "I'm slightly impressed."

Tai didn't say anything, he had to save whatever strength he had left to fend him off until the flames got too close for Matt's comfort or one of his friends showed up.

Matt calmly picked up the spear and walked forward.

"Face it Tai, I've beaten you." Matt said, his voice had a pleasure in it that was easly detected.

Tai's eyes started glowing. "No you haven't. Becuase I haven't been fighting you, and I won't."

"Then you're nothing but a coward." Matt stated, he knew that remark would have an effect on Tai.

For a moment Tai's eyes flashed red, "The only coward here, Matt, is you. You're the one who's fighting against your friends because you're scared. You're scared of your crest Matt."

Matt's eyes darkened.

"Tai! Matt!" Sora yelled over the roaring fire.

"What the heck are you guys doing over there?" Joe demanded.

"Matt! What're you doing!" Sora screamed when she saw what was in his hand. "Joe we've got to do something!" she whispered urgently.

Joe narrowed his eyes, watching the scene unfold before him. "The way I see it, there are three options; this whole scene is a trap to lure the rest of us here, Matt and Tai have finally gone insane, or..."

"Or what?" Sora asked.

"Or...we're not the only visitors in Piximon's lair." Joe replied.

Sora tried to calm herself, this was no time to panic and she knew it. "Okay, Joe start putting out these fires. We've got enough on our hands and we shouldn't have to worry about dying in a forest fire."

Joe nodded. "Sora you know them both alot better than I do, go try talking to them."

Sora nodded, but she was trembling.

Joe began using his magic against the raging fires and slowly started making progress.

Sora took a shuddering breath before taking a leap of faith over the blazing heat and landed in the clearing.

"Matt!" she yelled.

Matt glanced behind him but didn't waver his position.

"Stop this both of you, you're supposed to be friends." Sora said fiercly.

Matt turned to her and glared at her. "Stay out of this Sora."

"No." she said sternly. She concentrated her powers on his weapon and it flew from his hand into her's. It was her turn to glare at him, but as she stared into his icy blue eyes she noticed something. They almost looked hollow, like no life exsisted in them.

"Matt...what's happened to you?" she asked, her voice becoming softer as if she were talking to a small child.

"He's realized his true destiny." An unfamiliar voice replied with a childish chuckle.

"Puppetmon." Sora said with shock. "What have you done with Matt?"

"Nothing, just opened his eyes to his true potential." the wooden puppet replied.

She glanced at Tai, who had remained silent the entire time.

Tai's mouth curved into an amused grin. "He's toying with you Matt."

Matt turned to him, he didn't speak but he didn't need to, his expression, although as cold as stone, was questioning.

"He's using you. He convinced you to fight me for his own entertainment." Tai stated smugly.

Sora listened to him for a second before catching on. "That's right Matt. How else did Puppetmon know what we were talking about, he was listening and watching. Probably got bored and decided it would be interesting to turn the Sages against one another"

"Do you really believe them Matt?" Puppetmon asked with a roll of his eyes. (A/N: can Puppetmon rolls his eyes? lol, great now that question will be bugging me all night) "Do you really think your rival and his best friend would tell you anything but lies?"

"Do you think a Dark Master would tell you anything but lies?" Tai said smirking.

Matt placed a hand on his forehead, his eyes becoming lighter and life returning to them.

"We're your friends Matt. Do you trust us...or him." Sora asked, pointing to the puppet, who was beginning to realize he had lost this round.

Matt fell to his knees, an internal argument going on in his head.

_"FINISH HIM!' _

_" No, listen to your friends. They ARE your friends and want to help!" _

_"Kill him NOW!"_

He screwed his eyes shut, slowly returning to his feet, he conjured an ice dagger and he threw it at Tai with all his remaining power. He wanted the arguing voices to stop, they had been tormenting him since he met Cherrymon.

The ice blade was soaring towards it's mark with no sign of stopping. Tai's strength was gone and Sora could only watch, helpless, as the ice was closing the distance it's distance. The scene played itself in slow motion, seconds seemed like hours, minutes passed like days.

Suddenly a bright white light filled the area. The ice blade shattered and Matt's eyes cleared, returning him to his senses. He passed out and hit the floor with a light thud.

Tai let out a small sigh of relief and let his head drop to the floor.

Puppeton fumed, he hated not getting his way. "You Sages haven't seen the last of me!" and with that he vanished into the wilderness.

Sora rushed over to Matt's side. "He'll be alright. I just wonder what'll happen when he wakes up." She stood up and walked over to her best friend. "Are you okay?"

Tai had a look of complete puzzelment on his face, "I-I'm fine." He was examining his arms and hands, finding no injuries whatsoever.

"What's wrong?" Sora asked.

Tai looked up at her. "Nothing, that's just it. I _did _get hurt during that battle, but now..."

Sora realized what he meant and her eyes widened. "You're right." she glanced at her own leg which had been burned sevearly thanks to Meramon, but it was completely healed, "Weird. Do you think it had anything to do with that bright light?"   
"Hmmm...maybe. What caused that light anyway?" Tai asked.

Sora shook her head. "I don't know." She gazed around her and saw that the fire wasn't raging around them anymore." Looks like Joe's got the fires under control."

"That's a relief." Tai noted.

"Sages!" a voice yelled. The owner of the voice wasn't found by the three of them, but they instantly knew who it belonged to.

"Piximon?" Tai asked.

"Quickly, leave my realm, it is no longer safe. I will meet you outside." he ordered.

Tai and Sora rushed over to Matt and swung one his arms over each of their shoulders.

"Joe!" Sora yelled.

Joe walked out of a few trees and bushes, soot covered his face and glasses and his hair was sticking to his face from sweating, but he looked pleased with himself.

"What happened to him?" he asked after seeing Matt.

"Long story." Tai stated.

"But we need to leave now. Puppetmon is here, and the other Dark Masters might be on their way." Sora finished.

Joe nodded. "But wait! What about Tar."

Tai cocked his head in confusion.

"Oh yea." Sora laughed.

"So you almost forgot about me." Tar said behind them.

The trio (since Matt's unconscious there's really three of them) spun around and saw Tar leaning against a tree, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Hey Tar," Tai said smiling.

"Did you guys hear Piximon too?" she asked.

They nodded.

"He sounded urgent, and the fastest way out of here is to use my powers." she said.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Joe asked.

"We don't really have a choice do we." she replied shrugging. She walked over to the small group and her shadowy aura formed around her. Her eyes started glowing, and so did the other's. Their shadows were soon the only things remaining and they bolted toward the exit.

When they reached the rip in the desert they found Piximon standing with the other half of their team.

"We thought you guys were never getting out of there." Mimi said when she ran up to hug Sora and Tar.

Joe turned around and saw something that nearly made him choke.

Piximon's domain was a war zone. He thought he had made some progress in putting out the fires, but now...black smoke was covering the sky. Since Piximon's realm was like a dome there was nowhere the smoke could escape, so the sky was black. The jungle was now a graveyard of it's former self and the glamourous house that had claimed the mountain was a bunch of ruins.

"We don't have time to stand and stare." Piximon stated, flying in front of Joe.

"Piximon...Puppetmon couldn't have caused all that." Tai said in awe.

"Izzy's head whipped in his direction. "You saw Puppetmon!"

"Yea, he bewitched Matt or something." Sora concluded.

"We saw Piedmon on our way over here." Meg stated.

Mimi gasped. "Me and Tk saw LadyDevimon."

"Puppetmon, Piedmon and LadyDevimon. Why would they send all three of them after us?" Tk asked.

"They might actually be getting smarter." Tar said smirking.

"But...where exactly _are_ they?" Kari asked.

"Right here you sneaky good for nothing b-" LadyDevimon started angrily

"Peace LadyDevimon. We don't want them running away again." Piedmon sneered.

The villans had lined themselves up in a triangular form with the Sages in the center.

"Tai, got a plan?" Sora whispered.

He glanced at the three Dark Masters that had surrounded them. He realized that they positioned themselves very carefully around the Sages, away from the elements that could defeat them.

"Tai!" Sora whispered urgently.

"I'm thinking." he whispered back impatiently.

Suddenly Piximon jumped from the ground and drew another invisable barrier which he got all Sages into with a gust of magic. The barrier went flying towards their next destination; the Glacier.

"Sages, I don't have much time, but you need to know one final thing before I leave you.

The Shards, in the wrong hands, are evil. They will continue to poison Digitania until you find them. That's the reason the Dark Masters weren't able to access the true power of the Shards and why they placed them in the seven locations they chose. They couldn't handle the awesome power the ten of your possess. In fact, the seven deadliest places in Digitania didn't exsist until the Dark Masters decided to hide their treasure within them." Piximon said.

"So...when we recover the Shards..." Meg started.

"All the curses placed on this land will vanish." Piximon finished. "One more thing Sages. No matter how difficult your journeys seem, or how brutal your foes or experiences may be, you ten are ready for what is to come."

He suddenly jumped out of the ring while the Sages cried out in protest.

"What is he doing?" Meg cried.

"I think he's...buying us some time." Izzy thought logically.

"By sacrificing himself!" Mimi screamed.

A grief stricken silence lasted the remainder of the journey to the Glacier.

When the barrier finally came to a hault they found themselves on the border of the Glacier.

Everyone's faces were low and their eyes were downcast.

"He'll be fine." Tai said optomistically. Although he wasn't sure he believed his own words, he didn't want everyone looking so down. "Who knows, he might be with Genni and our parents right now."

Some of the Sages looked more hopeful after he suggested this, while others gave him look that said "doubt it". But this sort of suggestion goes along with that age old question "Is the glass half empty or half full."

After arrival it seemed that the day couldn't end sooner. The group went to sleep around sunset, after a decent shelter was found and the watch schedule was planned.

Sora volunteered to be first, then Tai, Tk, and Mimi got the early morning shift. Normaly Matt would've volunteered but he still hadn't awakened, so Tk decided to take his place for the night, and, as Kari observed, he was beaming.

Sora yawned and stretched her arms, she was tired. It was late into the night and she figured it was time to get some sleep.

She walked away from the fire and shook Tai's shoulder.

"Tai. Tai it's your turn." she whispered.

Tai stirred for about ten seconds before turning away from her with a grunt.

Sora rolled her eyes, trying to contain her laughter. _No wonder he always wants to watch first, it's impossible to wake him. _But she wasn't known to give up easily.

"Tai!" she whispered again. She grabbed his shoulder again, but as she did a crimson flash of light flared her vision.

She blinked several times and rubbed her eyes to get rid of the last traces of the blinding light. She reopened them slowly, since the light from the sun was making her vision fuzzy_. That was _weird she thought, but then she realized something even stranger_. Wait, it's supposed to be dark. Did I pass out? Oh no the others are going to kill me. Nobody was watching and we could've been attacked or_-

Her vision was finally cleared, but she didn't find herself in the forest bordering the Glacier with her friends, instead she was laying on an emerald hill that seemed to stretch for miles.

She bolted upward, the cool breeze gently playing with her hair which, she realized, was longer. She looked around anxiously, but her surroundings didn't seem to be the type a kidnapper or Dark Master would use to keep ubducted hostages. In fact, it was the cheeriest place she had seen since their adventure started. The view around her was breath-taking; the hill she was laying on seemed to be the center of the world, she saw the ocean in the distance where the sun was beginning to set with it's soft pastel pinks and purples and vibrant and beautiful yellows and oranges, all mixing together in nature's perfection. The world seemed entrely at peace, she saw the glittering tops of fine buildings dotting the forest below, and several large and beautiful ones that she recognized instantly as Digitopia by the coast.

"This is all a dream. A wonderful...fantastic dream," she realized. "If any of you wake me up I will-"

"Talking to yourself again Sora?" a mocking voice asked behind her.

She spun around and saw Tai standing behind her, his famous grin plastered on his face.

She laughed. "No, I was just...you know what, never mind."

Tai smiled before turning his attention to the view Sora was just admiring.

It was just then that Sora noticed some very different things about him about him, he looked taller, but that wasn't it. It was his eyes, they weren't their chocolate brown she grew up looking into, or the firey flame colored ones she was getting used to seeing, they were bright silver. It was as though a moonbeam captured them and bleached away the bright reds, golds and oranges, leaving them with the calming serenity and intensity of the moon.

Then there was another EXREAMLY different thing about his appearence. He had wings! White feathery wings that arched at his shoulders and stopped at his waist.

"What happened to your eyes?" she asked. "And where'd you get wings!"

Tai gave her a confused look.

"The color of your eyes, it's different." she pointed out. "And where the heck did you get wings!"

He looked at her for a moment, almost as if he were stunned, but then he did the last thing she expected, he started _laughing._

"What!" she demanded.

"Sora, how long has it been since we defeated the Dark Masters?" he asked.

"Ummm..." she started, unsure of what to say_. We defeated the Dark Masters? Since when? _

"Hmm...about a year or two ago, and you're just _now _realizing that I changed." he asked as he started laughing again.

"Two YEARS!" she exclaimed without even thinking. "Ugh...I mean...has it been that long already"

"Yea believe it or not." he replied. "Now there was a reason I came out here." He gazed up at the sky as if waiting for the answer to drop down in fron of him. "Oh yea, come on, Izzy has to show us all something. He thinks he found a way to modify the weapons."

"Weapons?" she asked.

"Wow Sor, are you sick or something?" he asked smiling.

"No, I guess I'm just tired." she replied tuthfully.

He offered her his hand and she was welcomed with the most amazing sight she had ever laid eyes on. It was a large white castle, the stones seemed to be the same type used to construct the GL castle in Digitopia; the white stones caught the sun the way opals did, making every side and every corner dazzling. A crest symbol glittered on every stone and the landscaping was just as beautiful with every shade of green imaginable. But what caught her attention the most was the stain glass window that had the same picture the painting at Piximon's had, it was built into the stone just above the front entrance doors as a welcome to anyone.

"Whoa...who lives there?" she asked in awe.

Tai gave her an expression the said "'Duhh Sora'" "Ummm...we do. We have for the last two years. You sure you're not sick?"

"I'm fine, really." she assured.

Tai gave her one last look before shrugging. "Alright, if you're sure. Now let's go. Race ya." he said smirking. He took off so fast Sora wasn't even sure what had happened, but she wasn't one to admit defeat. She ran as fast as she could, which, to her surprise, was much faster than she anticipated. She was practically flying through the fields, the wind at her back pushing her on. Cheering _faster, faster, faster _

It was probably one of the greatest feelings she had ever experienced. To be...free.

She would've run all day given the chance, but she noticed Tai leaning against a door casually.

She skidded to a hault and walked up next to him.

"Wow Sor, usually you give me a small challenge." he said smugly.

Sora punched him on the shoulder. "I told you, I'm tired."

"Well, you should be wide awake now, so come on." Tai stated.

Sora couldn't help but smile as she took her first step into the castle, excitment bubbling inside her, but just as her foot touched the plush carpet the crimson flash blinded her again.

She blinked to clear it, not wanting to lose Tai in this large castle, but when she opened them she was back in the forest.

"What?" she asked the air.

"Alright I'm up." Tai groaned. "Whats wrong with you? You look like you've seen Myotismon or something." he said laughing.

She laughed nerviously. "Uhh...Tai, is it possible to dream while you're awake?"

He cocked his head slightly. "Yea if you daydream I guess." he replied shrugging. "Why?"

"I just had the weirdest dream, but I don't remember falling asleep." she said.

"That's weird." he thought aloud.

"Yea, and you want to know the weirdest thing. We were, like two years in the future." she continued.

"That's weird too, but that's not what I was talking about." he said standing up. He walked over to the fire and picked up something that was laying in front of it.

When he didn't turn around Sora decided to see what he was looking at herself.

She walked next to him and saw that he was holding a black rose in his hand.

"Tai...what is it?" she asked. "I mean, I know _what _it is, but...what does it mean?"

"I'm not sure." he replied, "But maybe Izzy could figure it out."

"We'll have to ask him tomorrow." she said.

"Right." Tai agreed.

"Night Tai." she said smiling.

"Night Sor."

"And where did you find this?" Izzy asked, holding the rose in his hand and twirling it between his fingers.

Dark clouds were covering the morning sun and a bitter wind from the frozen wasteland they were bordering nipped at their flesh and chilled their bones. The only two unaffected by the severe weather change were Tai and Matt. Matt was used to this sort of weather, plus being able to control it and Tai had fire in his soul.

"It just...showed up last night." Sora replied. "Right after I had that really weird dream I was telling you about."

"And you found it Tai?" Izzy asked, trying to get all the facts straight.

Tai was standing as far away from the rose as he could while still being in hearing range with Izzy. Something about it seemed familiar, like a dark omen that was constantly telling him danger was coming.

"Yea." he replied.

"And it was in front of the fire right?" Izzy asked.

The duo nodded.

"Interesting. I'll keep it until I can find something that might give us a clue as to who left it." Izzy stated, placing it safely in his backpack (A/N: Ya know that weird thing that he carries his laptop in, yea...let's just call it a backpack ).

"Well...we better get going." Tar said reluctantly.

No one was looking forward to marching through snow and ice, especially since none of them were properly dressed for the journey. The only person that might've found joy into going to the Glacier was Matt, but he refused to speak to anyone.

Kari was the first one to see the glimmering white sea they were about to cross through, but even if the temerature was lower than she would've liked she couldn't hide the smile creeping up her lips. It really was beautiful, almost like a white velvet blanket was thrown over the earth.

She took several steps in the snow and watched as her footprints remained embedded in the powder.

Mimi hugged her arms tightly, she had loved her green outfit until now. She murmered curse words under her breath as she stepped into the snow.

The rest of the group followed suit, each with their own personal reactions.

About half an hour into the journey the group was already regretting their decision to cut through the Glacier. The temerature had to be below freezing since their breath was clouding in front of them, and the journey was miserable with everyone shivering in the bitter cold.

"T-This is s-so s-stupid." Tar said through chattering teeth. "We s-should've s-stopped for s-supplies."

"And where would we have stopped?" Tai asked rolling his eyes.

"A-Anywhere." Meg agreed.

Matt realized that he and Tai were probably the only one's in their right state of mind, since their brains weren't numb with frost.

"S-So Matt, how f-far is it t-to Wicked Wo-oods?" Tk asked.

"It's near Frozen City...or what's left of it anyway." he replied.

"M-Matt, that's the f-first t-time you-u've s-spoken s-since we lef-ft Piximon's" Sora realized.

Matt shrugged and continued walking.

"F-Frozen City! B-But th-hat'll take hours." Joe exclaimed.

"We'll f-freeze!" Mimi said in fear.

"No we won't, Mimi. Relax. If it gets too cold we'll find stable ground and build an igloo or something." Suddenly he stopped walking, his eyes wide and alert. "No one move."

Everyone stopped dead in their tracks.

"W-What's wrong?" Meg asked.

"The ground ahead of us is made of ice, and one wrong move could cause the entire glacier to split." he explained.

"S-So are yo-you s-suggesting we t-turn ba-back?" Tk asked.

"W-Well if we h-have to." Mimi said smiling broadly.

"We can't turn back now." Tai stated.

"Easy f-for you t-to s-say, you're not fr-freezing." Tar said, nudging him in the ribs.

"No, we don't have to turn back. But we have to be extreamly careful. One wrong move and..." he drew a line across his neck with his finger to help them get the point. "I'll go first, but you need to follow my footprints exactly."

The group nodded.

Matt took a slow, easy step forward. He felt the unstable ground slightly lower under his feet. He took a sharp intake of air and stepped to the side. He quickly faced his palms toward the ground, and a mist of cold air began pouring out of his hands. A thin layer of snow began to cover the ice to make it firmer and increase the safty of his friends.

Friends?

He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind, he needed complete concentration.

One by one the Sages followed; Kari and Tk first to ensure that they reached the other side safely, followed by Izzy and Mimi, Meg and Joe and Tar and Sora. Tai lingered back a bit.

After the training with Piximon each Sage had learned what their element triumphed over, which weakened them, and which worked best with theirs. Surprisingly three of the elements worked in a cycle; Ice triumphed over Water, Water triumphed over Fire, and Fire triumphed over Ice.

Tai rolled his eyes_. As if this wasn't dangerous enough, now I have to worry about the ice melting under my feet._

"C-Come on Tai!" Tar called ahead of him.

Tai took a hesitant step forward and began following the tracks made by Matt.

It was a good thing Matt was back to normal, otherwise they never would've made it. Tai realized as he caught up to Tar.

Suddenly his sixth sense started going crazy, Kari haulted too.

"Guys. I hear something." she stated.

Tai began looking around for the source of the danger, but they were probably the only living things for miles.

"Do you know what it is?" Matt asked.

Kari shook her head but she didn't stop looking for whatever it was. "I-It almost s-sounds like it's-s s-swimming."

"So it's below us!" Izzy shouted.

Everyone froze and looked down, but they couldn't see anything through the snow.

"Hopefully it's nothing, but we should keep moving just in case." Tk suggested.

Matt nodded and placed his foot on the next sturdy part of the glacier he could find.

Suddenly something shot out centimeters from where his foot met the galssy ice.

"Argh!" he yelped as he lost his footing and fell to the ground.

"Are y-you okay M-Matt?" Kari asked fom behind him.

Matt didn't reply, instead he watched the ground in horror as cracks began crawling from the hole in the ice, one heading straight for them.

"What _w-was_ that?" Joe asked.

The group waited in silence for a few moments. They knew something was about to happen, whether the ice would break and send them flying into freezing water or whatever tried to make sheshcabob out of Matt's leg would return to try again.

But instead...they got both.

Under the ice something stirred. Something suddenly rammed into the ice, torpedoing itself into the air and revealing itself, but also causing hundreds of cracks to open and large chunks of the glacier began splitting apart.

"Did you _have _to ask Joe?" Sora asked irratibly as she jumped to her feet.

"It's a Gesomon!" Mimi shrieked.

The Gesomon roared and began swinging its mighty tentacles around, trying to catch one of the unlucky Sages who ended up falling close to him.

Tar yelped as she rolled to the side to avoid a bone-crushing blow from one of it's two main tentacles.

"Do something!" she yelled as she dodged another attack.

Everyone snapped their heads towards Matt. Growing up in a landscape like this he HAD to know some method to dealing with this kind of threat.

Matt shook off the remaining shock and racked his brain for anything his dad may have told him about Gesomon.

Then, as if hearing his dad's voice inside his head, the answer came to him.

_Gesomon's arms are long enough to guard it's body, but it's eyesight is very poor. If you get behind them you'll have an easy time disposing of one._

Matt's eyes widened.

"Tar, keep doing whatever it is you're doing, I've got an idea." he yelled over the roaring digimon.

Tar gave him a look that could've melted the ice they were standing on, but another swipe from the Gesomon gave Matt a relieved moment to avoid her deadly gaze.

Matt ran to the back of the giant squid, ignoring his friends' confused yells. He opened his hand and a spear of ice came to his open hand.

He only had one shot at this.

There was only a small amount of time and he had to get it right the first time or they were all going to rest in a watery grave at the bottom of a frozen ocean.

He clutched the spear in his hand tighter as the slick back of the squid became nearer.

With a yell he threw the spear, allowing it to soar and pierce the blubber on the beast's back.

The Gesomon stopped. Completely frozen in shock. Slowly it's tentacles stopped flailing and the roaring faded. He slowly began to slump forward and Matt knew he had killed it.

He was about to sigh in relief, but then he remembered something. Tar.

He sprinted off toward the area he had left Tar, but he would never make it.

At the very last moment, before he made it back to his friends, he saw Tar go sliding across the ice.

He stopped in confusion_. How the-?_

"Tai!" Mimi cried.

Matt cursed under his breath. Tar had been saved but bone-head Tai was now in grave danger. (A/N: I don't want Matt to seem mean, but he's worried and...well...yea)

He skidded to a hault on his knees next to everyone else who was crowded around the deep crack where the Gesomon had made it's big entrance and big finish.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Tai pushed me out of the way, but the Gesomon's tentacle wrapped around his foot and pulled him under too." Tar said, her voice was angry, worried, and scared all in one. "I can't just stand here anymore." She stood up, but Sora stopped her.

"Tar, if you go in that water you'll drown or freeze...or both. Let Joe or Matt go."

"Me!" Joe cried.

"Well you _are_ the Sage of water." Meg stated.

"Wait! Look!" Kari exclaimed, pointing to the water.

A bright white light was piercing through the dark waters.

"What is that?" Mimi asked.

_ In the frozen ocean, blah blah blah _

Tai was desperatley trying to free his leg from the grasp of the giant dead squid. His eyes narrowed in frustration but his oxygen supply was running dangerously low.

Suddenly white hot pain pierced through his skull. He screamed in surprise losing the rest of his air supply, but something clasped around his neck.

"Can't have you dying now can we." a voice hissed.

Gem was smirking at him through his star-speckled vision. His eyes drooped as he slowly slid into unconsciousness, but Gem tightened her grip. With her other hand she sent black lightning at the squid's tentacle and it released him. He slowly reopened his eyes and Gem wittnessed them as they started glowing silver. She gasped in shock as her hand started burning and a white light filled the area with it's pure glow.

Gem hissed and faded away into darkness. The air in Tai's lungs was suddenly replenished and he bolted to the jagged hole above him.

Coughing and shivering violently he flung himself on the ice.

"Tai!" everyone cried in shock.

Matt and Tar pulled him out of the water.

"Tai you idiot!" Tar screeched. "Don't you EVER scare me like that or I will kill you!" She hugged him tightly.

"You're welcome." he said through chattering teeth.

"Tai you're cold. I thought you were immune to the cold." Sora noted as she took his hands in hers.

Tai would've blushed if he had any spare heat in his body.

"I t-thought I w-was t-too." he replied. He slowly removed one of his hands from Sora's and concentrated on his element. The swirling colors of red and orange, the warmth and light, the flames dancing in his palm. But nothing happened. His fire was...gone.

"G-Guys, my elem-ment. It-t's not w-working." he said. His eyes were wide and fearful.

"Is that even possible?" Izzy asked, shock evident in his voice.

"It can't be." Meg said shaking her head, eyes wide.

"There has to be another explanation." Kari said sternly. "If it was possible to lose our powers Piximon would've said so."

Tai remained silent while his friends argued over what had happened to him, but he knew. The feeling of fire running through his veins had become something he was accustomed to, the way his goggles felt on his head. Without them he felt...different, like a part of him wasn't there, and right now he felt like part of him was gone.

_ Later _

Night had fallen and after hours of walking they reached Frozen City...or what remained of it.

Chunks of ice were all that remained of what were once tall buildings. What had been great structures of carved ice were now ruins scattered across the snow covered ground. And anything that may have remained was now covered by a thinck layer of snow, which included some of the unlucky citizens who were killed during the Dark Master's attack.

Everyone was shocked by the devestated city and turned to Matt. Matt was standing firmly with his fists clenched, but anyone who knew him well could see the pain and hurt look in his eyes.

They took refuge in the Ice Dome that had been the GL meeting place, as well as Matt's home. Many of the rooms were completely destroyed, but they found a few that they could call their home for the night, including Matt's old bedroom.

The night was rough. Without Tai's magic they had a hard time lighting a fire to keep warm, not to mention keeping it lit. Matt found a few coats that they could use, but not enough for everyone so the Sages were huddled together in a tight bunch.

Taking watch was even more miserable. Tai would've volunteered to be first, but Sora (being the motherly figure that she is) told him that she would take his place so he could sleep and regain his strength. And Tai knew better than to argue with Sora when she was right about something.

So everyone was asleep, except Matt.

Matt was staring up at the night sky. The same night sky he watched every night that never seemed to change, but now that he was home, seemed very different.

He reminded himself over and over that this wasn't his home anymore, but it was so hard for him to forget all the memories he and his dad shared of this place.

Home is where the Heart is. Is his heart still here? Do any of his friends still have their hearts where their homes had been?

As his thoughts drifted to his friends he instantly cursed himself. His confusion and jealousy caused him to betray them for a short amount of time, he even attacked his best friend. And yet Tai hadn't mentioned it to anyone, he didn't even seem angry which really surprised him.

Matt still felt as though he deserved to be yelled at or to give Tai a free swing at his face, and nobody did. Sora hadn't said anything and neither had Joe, and if Tar had seen anything she hadn't spoken of it.

He chuckled to himself_. How could I have doubted our friendship? I should've known that my enimies would try anything to get our group to split, even feed me lies until I gave in to them_. He smiled to himself as he felt a great weight lift off him.

A blue light suddenly radiated from beneath his shirt.

He bolted upright as he lifted his crest toward his eyes. It had a light glow to it and he smiled_. I guess I knew what the meaning of friendship has been all along_.

After that thought crossed his mind a beam of blue light shot into the darkness, across the intense chill of the night, and into the dark forest that was barely visable on the horizon.

He jumped to his feet, eager to follow the light, but something was nagging at him. His friends.

_I'll just run over there and find out what my crest wants me to find, then run back before anyone knows I'm gone._

Every ounce of common sense he had was screaming at him to stop. That's what always happens in horror movies; one of the main charaters gets away from the group thinking that they'll be fine and they'll be back before anyone knows they're gone, but then they never come back and the rest of the group finds him/her in the woods, dead.

But his curiousness was getting the better of him as the light started dimming.

_Even if I did wake them up I'll be faster on my own. I'm used to this type of weather and waking them would take too long._

FInally the two sides of his brain made an agreement.

He walked back to where everyone was sleeping and woke Tai and Tar.

"Guys wake up!" he whispered furiously.

Tar's eyes cracked open slightly. "What?"

Matt took his crest from his neck and showed it to her.

Tar's eyes instantly shot open. "What...how...when?"

Matt' held a finger to his lips and motioned to Tai.

Tar glared at the sleeping form of her brother. "Tai you idiot! Get up you lazy bum." she shook him roughly as she yelled a few death threats as soft as she could.

Tai sat up and glared at her. "I thought you guys wanted me to sleep, that's why I'm not taking watch tonight."

Tar pointed to Matt's crest with a smug grin.

Tai's eyebrows rose at the sight of the beam shooting out of the room. "Why's it glowing?"

"The beam is going toward the forest. I think there's something there that it wants me to see." Matt stated.

"Then let's wake everyone up and go." Tar said standing up.

"No!" Matt hushed. This caused a startled glance to be shared among the twins.

"Why?" Tai asked.

The beam faded a bit.

"That's why. It would take too long, and I'll just go over there and come back." Matt replied.

"Matt, remember what happened to Mimi when she went off alone." Tar said sternly.

"Yea but I'm not going _completely_ alone." Matt assured. "You're coming with me."

"Me!" Tar exclaimed.

"I would take Tai too...but-"

Tai rolled his eyes "But I wouldn't be much help if we ran into trouble. I know, I know."

"I still don't think it's a good idea Matt." Tar said stubbornly.

"I know, but you two are my best friends and I thought you'd help me." Matt replied, giving them the best puppy-dog look he could muster.

"No fair!" Tai said laughing.

Tar laughed as she covered her eyes with her hands. "Must...resist..."

"Oh fine." they said in unsion.

Matt smirked_. Works every time._

"But we'll go and come right back. Tai, cover for us." Tar said sternly.

(A/N: lol, that same conversation is used w/ me and my friends ALL the time. and i figured now would be the perfect time to use it)

"M-Matt rem-mind me t-to kill you w-when w-we get-t b-back." Tar said angrily.

They were getting very close to the forest. The snow had stopped falling but the wind was still bitter, Tar could still feel the chill beneath the padded blue coat she grabbed before leaving.

" Sheesh relax Tar, we're almost there." Matt said rolling his eyes.

"If-f t-this is jus-st a st-tupid wild-d goos-se ch-hase..." she started as her eyes began to have the similar coloring of the snow beneath their feet.

"I know, I know, I'm dead right." Matt finished for her.

Tar glared at him. She was raised near the beach, the coldest winter they had every gotten was around 20F, this weather was ridiculious. She wanted to ask Matt how the heck he had spent his 13 years of life in _this_ place.

She was about to yell at him some more, but they had reached the petrified forest.

Tar's mouth dropped in shock, the place was so...depressing. The trees were twisted and bent unaturally, all had a greyness to them and they wound in a maze-like fashion, leaves that looked like they had died years ago littered the ground and shredded with the slightest touch, and dreadful fog hung in the air. But the scariest thing of all was the sky. The sky was completely visable since all the trees were dead, but something was very wrong with the moon...it was black with a white ring around it (like an eclipse).

"When Frozen City was first established they say this forest was enchanted with beauty and unimaginable hope and peace." Matt started. "Many thought that this was where the Goddess stood when she created Digitania. It was always spring and it was never cold. So because of it's great magic it was sacred to the founders of Frozen City and no one was to step foot in here.

But some idiots from the city decided that they weren't making enough profit shoveling snow. So they wanted to sell lumber to the citizens instead. They were brothers and decided to split the profit evenly, but as they continued to destroy more and more of the forest and their greed became greater and greater, they turned on each other.

The eldest killed his two brothers and they died in this place, it wasn't long after that that the eldest died from some strange illness that no one else has experienced in the history of Digitania.

My dad said that their greed and hatred cursed this place for all eternity, and as punishment for the three of them the Goddess trapped their souls in the forest they destroyed."

"So...this place is haunted?" Tar asked.

"Yep." Matt replied simply.

Tar's eyes lit up and she completely forgot about the cold. "Then let's go!"

"Wait Tar." Matt said grabbing her arm. "I've been in here before and it's capable of just about anything. This forest is...alive."

"You've been here before!" Tar asked shocked. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"Because I don't like talking about it." he said firmly.

Tar stepped in front of him, crossed her arms over her chest stubbornly, and looked firmly into his eyes. "Matt, keeping secrets doesn't help anyone. Look at what keeping secrets has done to us so far: Our parents kept the fact that we were Sages secret therefore we have no idea what we're doing, Tai has nearly gotten killed on numerious occasions because he didn't bother to tell us what happened to him on the Dark Continent, Mimi didn't tell us that she felt helpless so she got herself kidnapped, you didn't tell anyone that you didn't believe in your crest so you got hypnotized by Puppetmon and decided to kill everyone."

When she finished her eyes were angry as she realized how many of them had really been keeping secrets from the rest of them.

"Alright. I get it." Matt said angrily. "I'll tell you Tar because I trust you, but don't tell anyone else, promise?"

Tar's eyes met his and she nodded her head, ignoring the butterflies in her stomache. (A/N: Hmmm...i'm starting to think about changing the couples around a bit. When you review tell me which couple you like more Tar x Matt or Mimi x Matt...of course for all you Mimi x Izzy lovers if you choose the first one, that's who Mimi'll be paired with )

Matt took a deep breath. He was about to share something that not even Tk knew about, but one glance at Tar told him that she would never betray him and just wanted to help.

"When my parents announced their divorce when I was seven, I...I was devistated. I was so...angry with them that I ran out of my house and just kept running. I didn't know where I was going or what I was doing...I just wanted to get away..." he paused for a moment to recall a memory that he locked away in the back of his mind.

_FLASHBACK (_**_Present Matt's words)_**

Matt was running blindly away from his home. He didn't know where he was going but he didn't care, he just wanted to get away.

Away from his parents, away from his brother, away from...everything.

He stopped to catch his breath, his heart racing and his mind blank.

When his senses returned he glanced around at where he had ended up.

_**I ended up in the very place my dad told me never to go near. **_

Anger boiled within Matt and he stormed in stubbornly, his father's voice echoing in his ears.

_Promise me Matt, that you will never enter Wicked Woods. Evil beyond your wildest dreams lives there. Promise Matt._

_...Promise..._

_...Promise..._

Matt scowled. _The same way you promised we'd always be a family._

He rounded a large tree and stopped. Someone...or something was sitting on a large boulder ahead of him.

He quickly backed up and hid behind the tree. He leaned his back against the tree as he told himself not to panic. He looked over his shoulder to where the figure had been sitting...but it was gone!

"Are you lost little boy?" a female voice asked with a slight edge to her otherwise soft voice.

Matt's head whiped to the side where he found the being glaring at him.

She was wrapped in a dark purple hooded cloak that was ripped in several places. Lavander eyes shown from beneath her hood, but the rest of her face was concealed by the shadows. Her skin was pale and a black dress came down to her ankles. A dark purple belt circled her waist that various pouches and weapons hung from.

Matt tried to find words to answer but fear kept him from doing so.

The woman chuckled. "What's the matter? Can't speak?"

Matt gulped before daring to talk. "W-Who are you?"

Quicker than lightning she lashed out the dagger hanging on her belt and pointed it at his chest.

"I'm the last person you'll ever see." she said smirking. "Too bad your family will only find your dead corpse lying here."

Matt shut his eyes tightly waiting for the blow that would end his life, but instead he heard screaming.

He opened his eyes just a crack and saw her running, slowly evaporating into dark smoke.

He slowly sat up, only to be met with a bone crushing hug by his dad.

"Matt are you okay? You had me and your mom worried sick." Hiroaki asked. (A/N: I finally found a website that had all their parents' names)

"I-I'm fine." Matt replied. He noticed a large light stone in his hand. Light Stones were used by many people in Frozen City for protection against the creatures of Wicked Woods. If used correctly the stones will blaze with an intense light that can drive away any being of darkness.

"Matt what were you thinking? You could've been killed and I don't know what I'd do if-" Hiroaki said trying to sound stern, but he sounded so relieved that his voice didn't have an ounce of anger in it.

"Dad. Who was that?" Matt asked, not able to contain his question any longer.

Hiroaki took a deep breath. "That was a member of one of the deadliest groups in Digitania. The Xidigan Clan. They're a group of assassins who are known by a black pair of angel wings on their palm. I don't know much about them, but I do know that they've lived here in wicked woods for centuries and are said to be the servants of Lilithmon."

"Lilithmon?" Matt asked, unfamiliar with the name.

"I tell you about her when you're a little older. For now let's get out of her." Hiroaki stated.

Matt nodded and he and his dad ran out of the forest and back into the safety of the city.

_End FLASHBACK_

"I never came back after that. I saw only a small piece of Wicked Woods and I didn't want to see the more deadly areas." Matt finished.

Tar's eyes were wide "Wow. A group of assassins working for one of the Seven Great Demon Lords."

"Who?" Matt asked confused.

Tar laughed. "Your dad didn't explain who Lilithmon is, did he."

Matt shook his head.

"The Seven Great Demon Lords were, by mine and Izzy's guess, the Cursed Ones' digimon partners; Lilithmon, Lucemon, Leviamon, Daemon, Belphemon, Barbamon, and Beelzemon. But at the end of the war they were trapped in the center of Digitania, never to be released." Tar explained.

Matt had an awestruck look on his face.

"What? While Tai and Sora were learning Digitanian language I had to be taught _something_ too bad for me it had to be ancient history And when they say ancient they mean_ ancient." _Tar said rolling her eyes.

Matt smiled and suddenly the beam of light grew twice as bright and shot inside a nearby tree.

Matt and Tar exchanged a quick glance before racing toward where the light ended.

When they reached the tree the beam of light was vertical and Matt sighed as he realized what he had to do.

Tar laughed. "I'll get it." She grasped a branch and easily swung herself up. Balancing cat-like she walked to the next branch and hoisted herself on that one and so on until she reached a small hollow within the tree.

She reached her hand inside the hollow and felt a strange sensation tingle up her arm. Startled, she jerked her hand back and examined it. Nothing.

She shook her head and reached into the hollow again, feeling for something that didn't belong there. Her hand grazed over a smooth flat surface and she knew that it was what they had come for.

She pulled it out and found that it was a book.

She scowled. _All this for a book!_

"What'd you find?" Matt yelled.

"Some sort of book." Tar yelled back. She placed the spine of the book between her teeth as she descended.

At the bottom Tar handed the book over to Matt.

He ran a hand over the cover, silver velvet with a moon symbol and black star. At the top of the cover, in black shimering letters spelled the words **Rieh fo Thgil **

Tar gazed at it in awe. "Matt. Do you realize what this is!"

Matt was just as shocked as she was. "In Digitanian this spells-"

"**Heir of Light**!" Tar finished. "Open it! Who knows what kind of awesome stuff we'll find in it! I mean there could be secrets to controlling our powers or-"

"Tar"

"what each of our gifts might do or-"

"Tar"

"what our past lives were like and which crests we have and-"

"TAR!" Matt exclaimed. "There's...nothing."

Tar immediatly rushed to his side. "B-But that can't be." She took the book from his hands and flipped through the pages, but there really was...nothing.

She groaned in frustration. "I thought we had something!"

"Maybe we still do. Maybe only the present heir of light can read it, or maybe there's a trick to reading whatever's in here." Matt said reasonably.

"Or maybe it's just a blank book!" Tar said angrily.

"If it's just a blank book then you won't mind handing it over now would you."

Matt looked at Tar but she looked just as bewildered as he did.

"Wasn't me." Tar stated

Suddenly someone jumped from the tree above and landed in front of them.

Matt backed up, it was one of them. A Xidigan assassin!

_Frozen City_

Tai was so bored!

He had to stay up to cover for Matt and Tar, but he had nothing to do. Normally during his shift he could practice with his fire element, but it was gone.

He leaned against the wall and watched the horizon. Still no sign of them and they had been gone a while_. Maybe I should wake the others and go after them._

"Now is that really a good idea?" someone behind him asked.

Tai's eyes narrowed darkly, and although his head was pounding unbearably he remained in control of his gift, or at least as much as Piximon had taught him.

"I had a feeling I'd be seeing you Gem." he said casually.

Gem smirked. "Just thought you'd like to thank me for saving your life."

"After trying to kill me several times...umm...no." Tai replied.

Gem shrugged. "I didn't really think you would." She grasped something from behind her, but Tai didn't have time to figure out what it was as it came flying toward him. His sixth sense kicked in just in time and he dodged it, his eyes never faulting.

Gem was taken back by this but recovered quickly.

"You've gotten better, I'll admit that. But that doesn't mean I can't defeat you." Gem said smugly. She raised the weapon she had attacked with before, which Tai now knew was a whip, and tried to strike again, but Tai dodged the attack for the second time.

Gem, although she didn't show it, was in shock. _How did he get so good in such a short amount of time? _

This realization worried her._ Did all the Sages get better_?

But suddenly something clicked in her mind. His eyes! They weren't red!

She smirked. "So the Fire Sage has lost his element. This'll be easier than I thought."

_Wicked Woods_

"Hand over the book." The purple clad member said for the third time.

"No." Tar and Matt said in unsion.

The Xidigan member groaned and slouched her shoulders. "Come on. Do you even know what that is. I'm not sure how you obtained it, but it's vital to Digitania and I'm not letting a couple of thieves take it. So can't we do this the easy way for once."

"When's the last time we did _anything_ the easy way." Tar asked Matt.

"We know what this book is and we're not stealing it." Matt tried to explain.

"Oh really," the girl said sarcastically. "Then you'll hand it back to me. I'm the guardian of this area, plus I'm the overseer of that book."

"Overseer? Who appointed you?" Tar asked.

"None of you business!" she exclaimed, losing her patience. "Now hand over the book or I'll take it by force."

"Just try." Matt said.

The Xidigan member smirked under her hood and pulled something from a pouch she had on her belt. She threw it at the ground and it created a bright flash of light, but in the seconds that the light lingered she disappeared.

Tar hugged the book to her chest tightly. She shut her eyes and listened for anything suspicious. Her eyes flew open and she ducked just as a dagger nearly pierced her skull. She swung her leg beneath the girl's feet making her lose her balance, but she caught herself with her hands and flipped backwards. In one swift motion she grasped a dagger from each side of her belt and flung them at the two. Matt caught the one aiming for him by the hilt, while Tar vanished into her shadow form.

Matt threw the dagger slightly to the left of the girl, and Tar returned to her normal form behind her and caught it. She tried to slash the Xidigan girl, but she moved enough to only get her shoulder cut.

She growled as she touched where the blood was dripping, but she wasn't out of tricks yet. She pulled out two woven orbs and tossed one at each of their feet. She muttered a short incantation and several ropes started to move snake-like from within the orbs.

Caught off guard, the two Sages were trapped in a rope caccoon.

The Assassin smirked, thinking she had won, but something entirely unexpected happened.

Matt narrowed his eyes as they started glowing light blue. Ice slowly began climbing up the ropes until they were completely frozen. His blue aura returned and the ice shattered and was sent flying in all directions.

"How?" the girl whispered in shock. She dropped the spell upon the ropes and Matt helped Tar to her feet.

"How did you do that?" the hooded girl asked in awe.

The two Sages shared a look that asked the other 'Should we tell her?'

"We're Sages." they said after a moment's hesitation.

The girl's mouth fell open. _"You're _two of the Ten Sages. But you're no older than I am!"

Seeing their confused faces the girl lowered her hood and revealed what she looked like. She had long black hair and indigo eyes, she wore a purple sleeveless shirt that ended above her stomache, a purple skirt that ended just below her knees with her black utility belt, and black arm-socks. A black choker was wrapped around her neck and black knee-high shoes adorned her legs.

"I was appointed by the GL of Frozen City to watch over this book and wait for the Sages to come. But he said that they'd come when they were 15." she explained.

"So...you're on our side." Tar stated.

"Yes. My name is Ebony." she said smiling.

"Okay, so you attacked us to keep that book safe for us?" Tar asked, her head spinning slightly.

"Yea, sorry about that. But you were supposed to be a few years older and-"

"Relax, you were doing your job." Matt assured.

Ebony gave him a small smile of graditude. "But wait. Are you the only Sages found?"

"No, they're all waiting back at camp." Tar replied.

"Then we should get out of here." Ebony stated, glancing around.

"But why are you dressed like a Xidigan?" Matt had to ask.

"Because it's the perfect cover-up, and...my mother's kind of the leader." she finished the last part quickly. "But don't worry, once I'm out of this forest you won't have to worry about the Xidigans."

"So you want to come with us?" Tar asked.

"Yes!" Ebony said excitedly. "I've never been out of this place and you can use all of the help you need, right."  
"Well..."

"We'll have to check with Tai and the others." Tar finished.

"That's fair." Ebony replied. "But we better get out of here quick."

"But what about the Shard!" Tar said.

"We'll have to come back." Matt replied.

The three raced out of the forest, Matt and Tar wondering the same thing. _I wonder how the others are doing._

_Frozen City_

Tai cursed under his breath as he placed a hand on his arm. As he removed it he found a line of blood remaining.

He managed to dodge most of her attacks, but he couldn't attack her. To attack without his powers would require him to be at close-range, but Gem's attacks were keeping him from doing so and Gem knew it.

He had an idea, a risky one, but it was something. But he'd only get one chance.

As Meg thrust her whip again, Tai knew it was now or never. He moved to the side, but let the weapon coil around his arm. He yanked it out of her grasp and tossed it behind him.

Meg's red eyes widened in surprise, but she got over it quickly. The attempt to stall her worked, but it came at a price. A spiraling wound wound up his arm and she could tell by his face how much pain it caused.

"Well, I think that's enough damage for one evening." she said smirking. "But before I go..."  
Gem disappeared and reappeared behind him, grabbing her whip. Then she grabbed his injured arm, her hand was glowing bright red, and she clasped her other hand over his mouth as he screamed through it.

It felt like needles were piercing through his torn flesh.

She released him and disappeared in her trade-mark shadows.

Tai grasped his arm and glared at the sky.

"Tai!"

Tar ran into, what used to be the entrance hall of Matt's home. First glance at her brother told her something was wrong. His eyes held so much anger and hatred and pain.

"Are you alright?" she asked. She glanced around and saw all the black streaks across the walls. Then she looked at her twin. He was clutching his arm and his eyes were closed. Blood was seeping between his fingers.

"Tai what happened!" she asked. She took his arm and saw all the blood and gasped.

"Relax Tar. I've had worse. Can't think of any right now...but" Tai said trying to ease his sister's worries.

"Shut up Tai. That's not true. Matt, Ebony get over here." Tar stated angrily.

"Ebony?" Tai asked through clenched teeth.

"Long story, I'll explain it all later." Tar stated. "did Gem do this." she hissed.

Tai nodded.

Tar's eyes narrowed. "I'll help you kill that son of a b-"

"Ouch! Could you take your fury out on the wall or something." Tai asked.

"Sorry."

"Whoa, Tai what happened?" Matt asked. A girl, Tai presumed was Ebony, stood next to him.

"Gem showed up again." he smiled slightly. "How much did I miss in the last few hours?"

"Alot," Matt said laughing. "Oh, Ebony this is Tai. He's the Fire Sage."

Ebony smiled, but then noticed his arm. "Who's Gem?" she asked as she took a pouch from her belt.

"Let's hope you'll never find out." Tai replied.

Ebony kneeled next to him and placed a few strange leaves on the wound.

"These will help you heal faster." she said.

"Thanks," he said smiling. "Tar, you better go wake everyone. Now that Gem knows we're here she might send Piedmon. Did you find the Shard?" Tai instructed.

"No, but it can't be too hard to find a Dark Master's hideout." Matt said shrugging.

"Dark Masters. Like Puppetmon?" Ebony asked.

"Yea." Tai replied.

"Does he live in Wicked Woods?" Matt asked.

"Yea. I know where if you need a guide, but on one condition." Ebony replied. She turned her attention to Tai. "I want to go with all of you on your quest."

Tai considered her request for a moment, but didn't find anything wrong with it. "Deal."

Ebony grinned and walked back over to Matt.

When everyone was awake they welcomed Ebony into the group and started their journey to Wicked Woods.

"W-Why are w-we always-s w-walking-g!" Mimi exclaimed as the chill of the late night started to get to her.

Ebony giggled and handed Mimi her cloak.

"Oh no I couldn't, then you'll freeze." Mimi said shaking her head.

"Don't worry Mimi, I'm used to this weather." Ebony replied.

"You sure?" Mimi asked.

Ebony nodded and Mimi graciously swung the cloak around her shoulders, already feeling the warmth spreading through her.

"Wow this is nice. What kind of material is this?" Mimi asked.

"It's a mixture of-" Ebony started to reply.

"AHHHH! Tai I'm gonna kill you!" Sora screamed.

Ebony and Mimi turned their attention back to what was happening with the group.

Tar, Meg, and Matt were on the ground laughing hysterically, Izzy looked like he was about ready to join them, Joe was rolling his eyes but there was a small smile on his lips, Tk and Kari were quietly laughing so they wouldn't enrage Sora further, and Tai was smiling innocently as he held a snowball in his hand.

"What'd we miss?" Mimi asked Kari.

Kari was still laughing as she explained. "Tai shoved a bunch of snow down the back of Sora's shirt. The look on her face was Priceless." (A/N: My friend Nick did that to me, only it was a whole bunch of ice cubes, lol, he knows better now )

Sora glared at her best friend, then tackled him to the ground.

"Tai, you're such an idiot." she said causing them both to start laughing.

"Okay you two lovebirds, we're almost there so come on." Matt said smirking.

"We're not lovebirds." they said in unsion.

"Suuuuure." Matt said laughing.

The two realized their position and Sora quickly got off him, both blushing madly.

Matt chuckled at their reactions, but was met with two snowballs in the face.

When he cleared the snow from his vision he saw Tai and Sora smirking triumphantly.

Matt rolled his eyes and continued leading the way to Wicked Woods.

The cheerful atmosphere was instantly evaporated as they haulted before the dark realm.

"Wow, it's a lot bigger up close." Izzy observed.

"Lead the way Ebony." Mimi said nervously.

Ebony nodded and walked through the familiar terrritory, keeping her senses sharp and alert for signs of danger.

The Sages followed her silently, glancing around in wonder. Sora hugged herself tightly; she felt like something was watching her and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

"What's up Sora?" Tar asked, sensing the tense aura around her.

"Nothing." Sora lied.

Tar looked at her disbelievingly.

Sora sighed and rolled her eyes. "I'm just being paraonoid, I feel like someone's watching me, that's all."

Tar gave her a reassuring smile and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry so much, you've got nine people here who won't let anything happen to you, and although we don't know Ebony that well she seems to be on our side, so she won't want anything happening to any of us."

Sora relaxed a little. "Thanks Tar."

"What are friends for?" she asked with a wide smile. Sora laughed.

"Sshh!" Ebony hissed suddenly.

All conversation stopped...heck everything stopped.

"Quick, Mimi, give me my cloak. If we're spotted I'll lie and say that you're captives or something." Ebony said.

Mimi nodded and handed the purple cloak back to her. Ebony snatched it and swung it around her shoulders. Sora wasn't the only one who could feel a presense near.

The leaves crunched beneath their feet and the fog began closing around them. It was the perfect scene for something bad to happen and no one was taking any chances.

Kari had slipped her hand into Tk's and was treading through the trees with her eyes closed, listening to the wilderness around her.

Ebony had her hand rested on her dagger and everyone's guard was up.

Kari haulted, her eyes open and worried.

"Something's following us." she whispered.

Ebony nodded, also hearing it.

After a few minutes she stopped. She glanced at everyone in the group. "We should split up."

"No!" everyone said sternly.

Ebony was taken back by how sure of themselves they were. "Why not?"

"Every time we split up something really bad happens." Joe replied.

"Well then whatever's following us is going to start picking us off one by- AHHH!" Ebony cried as her leg was pulled from beneath her. She was held upside down reaching for anything that would help release her.

Simultaneously she heard more shocked yelps as the Sages were also ubducted by an unknown force.

Ebony quickly grasped a light green gel from one of her pouches and splattered some on whatever was grasping her leg. She felt it freeze and she stopped swaying, she looked up, expecting to see a member of the Xidigans or some other clan, but instead she was looking through the branches of a tree. The tree was what had grabbed her!

The branch that wrapped itself around her leg slowly began to shrivel and Ebony started plummeting head-first toward the ground. She flipped and gracefully landed on her feet.

As she glanced around she noticed that the Sages had taken care of the remaining...evil tree branches.

"Is everyone alright?" she asked, brushing dirt from her clothes.

"Yea, I think." Sora said rubbing her head.

"Wait a second...where's Tar?" Matt asked suddenly.

With a second glance around the area it was obvious that Tar wasn't present.

"Ebony, get us to Puppetmon's." Tai stated, clearly unamused by Puppetmon's little game.

Puppetmon's

"Oh ho ho ho! But you soon will be." Puppetmon said laughing hysterically.

Before him lay a large globe that showed every landform he wished to see, every region he wanted to check on, and every pesrson he wanted to know the whereabouts of.

It was his own little crystal ball looking into the world.

At this very moment he was thinking of some fun games to play when his guests showed up. And by fun he always meant "'fun for him"'

He giggled like a demented child and walked over to a small matin the center of the room that was an uncanny likeness of the Wicked Woods. His eyes travelled over the many evil places within the Woods; Xidigan hide-out, Rayless Cave, Python Creek, so many wonderful places to choose from.

He had his ideas all planned out, he was going to keep the stronger Sages and harness their magic, sell some of them to the Xidigans, and kill the rest just for fun in one of the evil places he listed before, and Piedmon can have the Sage of Fire for a large sum.

He smiled the way a 5 year old would if he realized he had just won a lifetime supply of candy.

He looked at each Sage, trying to decide which would serve each of his evil plans through his 52-inch TV. (A/N: I WISH I HAD A TV THAT BIG!) When the camera suddenly passed over someone he didn't recognize.

He stopped and zoomed in on the girl.

"Ebony! That spineless little-"

"Master Puppetmon?"

Puppetmon's eyes were narrowed darkly. "What do you what now Kiwimon?"

"The Sage is here." he replied.

Puppetmon smirked _The bait_

"Good, send her up here." Puppetmon commanded.

Kiwimon bowed his head and left the room. Moments later Puppetmon overheard several death threats being screamed from the stairs of his house.

"If you don't let me go NOW I will visciously tear you all apart limb from limb!" Tar screamed as she was dragged up a flight of stairs. Puppetmon smirked and turned his back to the door, gazing at the monitors again.

A door crashing against the wall and a thud announced the presence of his first captive.

"Welcome to my home Sage." Puppetmon greeted without turning around.

Tar stood up glanced around. "You call this a house? Looks more like a circus tent made of twisted tree branches."

The HQ of Puppetmon did in fact look the way Tar described it. In the shape of a circus tent and completely made of twisted and paralyzed tree branches all morphed togehter it stood, three stories with no windows, the entrance one of two areas that looked out of place; large metallic doors that told the world to "Keep Out", and at the top of the wooden palace in plain view was a giant clock. But the inside was a completely different story; while most of the rooms were dark and forbidding, all of them on the third floor were bright and filled with trick doors and fake floors, reflecting Puppetmon's trickster reputation.

"What? You mean to tell me you don't like my house?" Puppetmon asked, turning around.

"Wow, you're not as dumb as you look." Tar thought aloud.

"Well. Then let's play a little game. If you win, I'll let you and your friends leave the forest alive, but if I win you and all your friends will surrender to me." Puppetmon stated gleefully.

"I doubt my friends will agree with your terms." Tar noted.

"Let's ask them then." Puppetmon said shrugging. He snapped his wooden fingers and suddenly all remaining adventurers fell through the celing right on top of Tar.

"Found her." Joe said.

"Thank you Captain obvious." Matt stated. "Now get your foot off my head before you ruin my hair!"

"Guys...I...can't breath..." Tar said while gasping for air under her ten friends.

Puppetmon laughed joyously at their prediciment.

When they were all standing again Puppetmon returned to his earlier statement. "Alright, my game is simple. 5 of you will be hidden throughout my house while the remaining 6 of you will have to find them. Of course my game has a time-limit, if you don't rescue the hidden Sages in that time their souls will belong to me, and so will the one who was supposed to find them. But I want this game to be interesting for the ones hidden too, so their hiding place will have a horrible danger in it as well." Puppetmon laughed after he said this.

"What if we refuse to." Tai dared to ask.

"Then you forfit and I get all of you." Puppetmon said smirking. "Now, let's let the game begin."

Izzy suddenly vanished, followed by Joe, Matt, Tk and Tai.

The girls looked around in confusion realizing how the game was going to be played.

"You know the one you have to rescue." Puppetmon stated. "Now go, time's a wasting." A giant hourglass that was draining unnaturally quickly appeared behind him.

Tar vanished through her shadows while Meg disappeared in her darkness. Ebony, Sora, and Mimi raced out the door, but Kari lingered a bit. She shut her eyes, deciding to find Tk using her connection with him. When she opened her eyes a thin trail of golden magic was leading her out the door. She grinned and rushed after the trail.

Meanwhile the other 4 were stuck.

"This place is SO big. How're we ever going to find them?" Mimi asked.

"There's got to be a clue or something." Meg agreed.

"Or...it could be right in front of us." Tar mused.

"What do you mean by that?" Sora asked curiously.

"I mean there's got to be a pattern or something that Puppetmon used." Tar replied.

"What about the elemental pattern, strengths and weaknesses." Ebony thought aloud.

"That might work. It might reveal their locations." Sora stated.

"Well the three easiest are Matt, Joe and Tai." Meg said.

"So Matt's melting, Joe's freezing and Tai's drowning?" Mimi asked.

"It's possible." Tar mused.

"Hmmm...Puppetmon is a trickster, he doesn't do anything that straight forward." Mimi thought aloud.

"What if...he did it backwards." Sora said.

"Backwards?" Meg questioned.

"What if Puppetmon did the cycle backwards." Sora said again.

"That MUST be it!" Tar said excitedly. "So where do you think Matt would be?"

"Someplace with water. Try the basement, maybe Puppetmon has a moat." Mimi suggested.

Tar nodded and went into her shadow form and raced toward the basement.

"Then Joe would be someplace really hot..." Ebony stated.

"Like a fireplace?" Meg asked.

"Yes!" Ebony cried. "Okay, I think Kari knows where Tk is, now where's Izzy?"

Mimi looked eager to know this answer.

"I think he'd be on the first floor, maybe right outside his house, in a garden or something." Meg shrugged.

Mimi nodded and ran off.

"I think Tai's in the attic, or...on the roof," Ebony said before running to find the nearest fireplace.

Sora and Meg exchanged glances. Both their eyes narrowed darkly.

A cloud of darkness appeared around Meg, while Sora jumped out a window, catching the wind and glided to the roof.

"Tai?" she called over the freezing wind.

Silence.

"Tai!"

The wind whistled around her, but no reply came. She was starting to wonder if Meg had found him in the attic when she heard a reply.

"Sor?"

Upon hearing her nickname she glanced around for any trace of her best friend.

"Tai where are you?"

"Hanging over the edge!" he replied.

Sora followed the sound of his voice and found herself just above the clock at the front of Puppetmon's house/circus tent. Sora gasped when she saw his arms tied to the minute hand on the clock.

"Are you okay!" she yelled over the wind.

The minute hand suddenly lurched downward and Tai was thrown into the wall. "Wonderful." he replied sarcastically.

"Hang on." Sora said. She stood up and found Meg standing behind her.

"Want some help?" she asked, her eyes were still narrowed, but she sounded sincere.

Sora swallowed her pride and nodded, her eyes matching Meg's.

Sora laid on her stomache and grasped Tai's hand in her's. Meg shot some dark magic at the ropes and they snapped. Tai was sure at that moment that he was going to fall but Sora held onto him and Meg grasped his other hand.

With a little effort Tai was back on solid ground.

"Thanks." he said smiling at both of them.

Sora blushed slightly, but as she glanced at Meg she clenched her fists angrilly. meg was blushing too!

"Hey Sor, you okay?" Tai asked, oblivious to the silent argument between the two.

Sora smiled brightly. "Yes, now let's get inside."

Tai shrugged and walked through the roof door that led to the attic.

Meg and Sora glanced at one another before proceeding, each saying the same thing to the other _All's fair in love and war, so Bring it._

(A/N: ooooh, competition between Sora and Meg, muwahahahaha, anywayz, I'm only gonna write about the two important groups because all the others are gonna be basically the same. So we're skippin to Tar and Matt, and Tar rescued Matt already)

Tar and Matt were heading back to Puppetmon's '"playroom"' through the damp and musty basement. They rushed up the creaking wooden stairs to the first floor.

"I hope the others are alright." Matt mused.

Tar smiled reassuringly. "I'm sure they a-" She stopped mid-sentence as they passed by a strange door. She stopped in front of it and furrowed her eyebrows. Something about this room was...calling her toward it. She placed her hand on the doorknob in a trance-like state and turned it.

"Tar, what're you doing?" Matt asked.

Tar didn't even acknowledge him which really surprised him, and she stepped into the room without even a second thought of what may lay on the other side. But the moment her foot entered the room her eyes started glowing their ghostly white and she fell backward. Matt quickly caught her and her eyes shut.

"Tar? Tar! Tar wake up!"

_Tar blinked several times to get her eyes adjusted to the light. _

_Light?_

_"Hey where am I?" she asked the air. "Matt? Tai? Kari?...Anyone?" _

_"Relax you're not here alone." a voice said laughing. _

_"Who's there?" Tar demanded._

_"The one who brought you here. Welcome to the Spirit Realm. The middle area betweem times, minds, and death" the voice replied. Black shadows began spinning wildly before a figure was revealed. It was a young woman, she was about fifteen or sixteen with waist-length brown hair and piercing midnight eyes. Her shirt matched her eyes and a loose pair of blue jeans adorned her legs. She wore a friendly smile, but a sword hanging from her belt gave off a warning to all, not to mess with her._

_Tar scanned the woman before her. Something about her was...familiar._

_"Don't tell me you don't recognize me." she said laughing._

_Tar shook her head slowly. _

_"I'm you." the woman replied. "Well, I'm you two years from the time peroid you're in."_

_"What! You're kidding right." Tar stated disbelievingly, but the more she looked at the woman the more she noticed all the similarities between them. _

_The older version of Tar laughed. "I know it's hard to believe, but I'm here strictly to give you information." her face turned serious after she said this "When you wake up you'll be in front of that door you tried to open. Inside there'll be a a stone pedestal. One of the obttom stones is loose and inside you'll find what you're looking for." _

_Tar took note of everything her older self said. "Alright, but how did you contact me?" _

_Older Tar smiled mysteriously. "You'll just have to find out in two years." _

_"But wait! I need to know, how do we get the Heir's journal to work?" Tar asked._

_"Try getting everyone to read T-...I mean the Heir's journal during the next full moon." elder Tar replied. "Sorry I can't stay longer, but it sounds like I'm needed. Good luck."_

_Tar wanted to call out to her, but in a blinding flash of dark blue light she was gone. Tar shook her head and slowly felt herself waking up. _

_"Meddling in the past Tar? That's not like you." _

_"Shut up Tai." future Tar said punching her brother on the shoulder. "They're at Puppetmon's and I needed to meddle this time, otherwise they wouldn't have found it." _

_"Puppetmon's?" Tai repeated. He rubbed the back of his neck. "They're in for some rough times soon, real soon." _

_"I know." Tar replied. "But we did it, so they can too." _

_Tai nodded. _

_"Oh, by the way Tai, they found your-"_

Tar opened her eyes slowly.

"She's awake!"

Tar shut her eyes at the sound of Mimi's high-pitched voice.

"Tar, are you okay?" Kari asked from right next to her.

Tar sat up, realizing that Matt was still holding her. She blushed but quickly returned her attention to the room. She rushed inside and ran her hand along all the bottom stones on the stone pedestal. One stone jiggled beneath her fingers and she yanked it out. A dark blue glow was revealed as the stone was removed.

Slowly a dark blue square hovered from the hole and circled her neck. Her Crest.

_Tar, Sage of Shadows, Bearer of Trust, gifted with the ability to read minds_

Tar gasped when the voice left. She took the crest in her hand which was a midnight blue with a black ring and an even darker blue ring overlapping on another.

"Trust." she said grinning.

"Tar! You found your crest!" Joe cried.

"But how'd you know it was there?" Izzy asked.

"I got a little hint from the future." she said laughing at their baffled expressions. "I'll explain later. Let's get out of here."

"First, we have to take care of Puppetmon." Matt reminded.

The group nodded and rushed up the stairs to the third floor, eager to get the battle over with, but as they threw the door open they realized the battle was already over.

"What happened?" Tk asked. The room was ruined and Puppetmon was gone, but his wooden cross was laying in the middle of the room, it's owner gone forever.

"Looks like we've got someone watching out for us." Kari said, although her voice was nervous.

"Or another villan is after you and thought that with Puppetmon out of the way it's less competition." Ebony said matter of factly.

"Well, one less Crest to find and one less villan to battle. Let's get out of here and get a good night's sleep. We're going to have to leave in the morning so that the remaining Dark Masters show up." Tai stated.

Everyone nodded in agreement and left the forest, but as they reached the safety of the ruins of the frozen city they watched as an evil purple mist floated from the forest, releasing it of the curse the Shard had brought upon it all those years ago. And the Sages knew that this was only the beginning of their troubles, for what lay ahead they didn't know, but it was waiting for them...waiting.

_TTTTTTTTTT_

**I'M DONE! OMG my fingers hurt, lol. BUT THE PAIN WILL BE WORTH IT IF YOU REVIEW! Hope you all liked it, and don't worry, I've got a whole bunch of ideas for the next chapt. so it won't take as long to update! **

**LUV Y'ALL!**

**_AznSnostuff_**_: YOU'RE BACK! HURRAY! I luv ur reviews! lol, you don't have to worry about this fic being over for a LONG LONG time, lol., but i've been so VERY busy lately that I haven't been able to get online (and i have four very good excuses at the top ) and i'M SRY! blushes ur review was so nice! It gave me a HUGE smile on my face . And ur one of my top 5 fav authors on this entire site! In fact i think u were the first author i put in my faves . I'm SO glad u like my stories and I hope u liked this chapt! Oh, and Tar wasn't in the Heir of Light because she was somewhere else, but I did mention that she was gonna be in this one when Emprissmon said "and the last one is closer than you think" or something like that . ANYWAY GLAD U LIKE IT! LATERZ! _

**_Flarie Hanami_**_: Hiya! blushes Awwww...thanx! I luv reviewers like you! U deserve a cookie! Sry you had to wait so long, but i hope this chapt. made up for the long wait! HOPE YA LIKE IT! U ROCK! LATERZ!_ _AND TOTALLY TAIORA 4EVA! _

**_Majestic Evil:_**_ hehehe, evil people r so awesome, i should know _****_Born to read, COOL! Me too, and write . SRY FOR THE LONG WAIT! BUT U TOTALLY ROCK! LATER my friend!_

**_iamkagomeiluvinuyasha:_**_ YaY! COOL! Dog skillet bisket, i like that! Thanx for the good luck! It helped a WHOLE LOT CUZ I ACED EVERY ONE OF THEM! YAY! maybe i should ask u for more luck on every test i take XD, lol. PIXIMON ROX! Sry the wait was so long! But i'm hopein this extra long chappie made up for it . LATERZ AWESOME REVIEW BUDDY! AND U ROCK MORE!_

**_Priestess kurumi inu's sister: _**_heehee! I LUV UR REVIEWS! They're SO nice! they get me off the pc with a HUGE grin on my face sry for putting u through so much torture! I hope this really long chappie makes up for it, and if it doesn't you get a giant cookie U ROCK! LATERZ!_

**_battousai-clau: _**_THANX DUDE! Hope u liked this chapt. and sry for the long wait! the next one will be much sooner! U ROCK! LATERZ!_

**_Rayana Wolfer: _**_YaY! I'M SOOOO GLAD U LIKED IT! I really wanted to put a yin/yang battle in here somewhere and that was the perfect place , Well of course i had to make Tai's battle the awesomest! TAI ROX! Thank U SOOOOOOO much for that website! It's gonna save my life i can tell SRY FOR THE RIDICULIOUSLY LONG WAIT! The next chapt will be MUCH sooner, i've already got ideas in my head! And thax for the b-day wish! U're reviews make me SO happy! THANX BUDDY! Hope u liked this chapt. LATER!_


	13. Vile Valley part 1

**me**: JELLO!! I'm not dead!! nor am i the undead!! Dammit!!! being the undead would be SO cool!!

Okay I've kept u all waiting long enough, lol. SRY ABOUT THAT!! Damn school and it's homework giving teachers that keep u off the pc for weeks at a time!!

**Steffi**: Here Here!!

**me**: where?

**Steffi**: HERE!

**me**: where?

**Steffi**: Here you idiot!!

**me**: (_turns around_) Oh! Hi Steffi!!! Hey...how'd u get into my story again??

**Steffi**: (_hides teleportation device_) I walked

**me**: from mars?

**Steffi**: No! From venus, duh!

**me**: oh okay. Hey Steffi, would you like to announce the results of the "What Girl Does Matt Get During My Story...Voting Thingy"?

**Steffi**: umm...okay, Matt's the blonde one right?  
**me**: Yes.

**Steffi**: the cute blonde one or the younger blonde one?

**me**: (_slaps hand on forehead_) plz excuse her, she's from the Teen Titans section of Fanfiction and probably couldn't tell the difference between Mimi and Sora.

**Steffi**: ...and Mimi is?

**me**: just announce the results!!!

**Steffi**: Drum roll please!!! (_drums)_

AND THE VOTES R IN!!!!!

Tar x Matt: 2

Mimi x Matt: 1 (sry!!)

Well I guess we have our winner!!! THANX TO **RAYANA WOLFER**, **STAR** AND **JYOURA KOUMI** FOR VOTING!!

**me**: Thank u Steffi for that ehh,...wonderful announcement. Okay, this chapt has alotta language, i'm sick of keepin my language clean and such, so if you don't like cursing, then leave the building...or the story, whichever works for you. SO...I've kept u waiting long enough, SO ENJOY!!!!

_TTTTTTTTTTT_

Gem slammed her fist against the wall.

"I don't understand this!!! How could those little punks get so powerful!!"

She slowly removed her hand from the concrete wall and revealed the cracks stretching from where her fist had made contact.

"Perhaps it was Piximon." a villanious voice replied. "The oaf _is_ famous for his training skills." The owner of the voice wasn't visable in the darkened room, but his voice vibrated with the essence of an upper level of evil. Greater than Piedmon, greater than the Dark Masters, and possibly greater than the Sages...or so they once thought.

"Even Piximon can't perfrom miracles. I knew they would be stronger after spending a few weeks with Piximon, but no, the power I felt from the Sage of Flames was too great to be earned in the course of a few weeks." Gem persisted.

"They have had these powers with them all of their lives. This could be the awakening of their full potential."

"No. The Shards are the objects that awaken their absolute power. This...This was something different. I have felt this sort of sensation before...but where!" Meg hissed.

Piedmon had been listening to the conversation with absolute interest. "If you believe, Mistress, that this power is something to be concerned with, then we should all be worried. But if you've been up against this feeling before, Mistress, and if you remember what sort of power this is, then we might still have a chance."

"I don't need you pressuring me Piedmon!" she yelled. "If your goal is to add more stress to my life then by all means, leave."

"Gem, what about your past life's experiences? Would you uncover evidence from there?" the dark voice implored.

"Yes...the energy I felt was definately in that time era as well. But what was it!!"

"There is always one option Mistress..." Piedmon thought aloud, revealing the dark side of his mask from the shadows.

Gem spun around and glared at him. "You can't be serious Piedmon. _Him_. Highly unlikely." she let a dark laugh. "I have met him in my past life and there is no way Tai Kamiya is his reincarnation."

"Mistress...I know how to find out." Piedmon stated.

Gem's head whipped in his direction, her fierce eyes filled with firey anger. "You will speak when spoken to, Piedmon."

Piedmon shrank back a bit, but forced his face to remain expressionless.

"Now, what is your proposal," she asked, her voice softening a bit but still retaining it's harsh edge.

"Well, Mistress, the powers of the Sages are controlled by their emotions. Emotions, Mistress, that they have no control over...yet." Piedmon said.

Gem seated herself on a red leather armchair. "Go on."

Piedmon grinned at accomplishing the task of grasping her attention. "Anger and Pain, Mistress, are two emotions that can drive even the strongest of souls to the edge. I believe that all the Sages have experienced these overpowering feelings, but what do you say to bringing it up a notch.

Gem leaned toward him. "Are you suggesting that I cause the Sages enough pain to provoke them into losing control of their powers?"

"Well, at the present moment, we are only interested in finding out about the Sage of Flames, correct?" Piedmon asked.

"Piss him off Gem." the sinister voice commanded.

"You make it sound so easy," she rolled her eyes, "but I don't know if I could aggravate him into losing the mastery over his element."

"You have ten possible candidates Gem, ten ways to get under the boy's skin, now pick one!" the voice yelled angrily.

"Yes, ten individuals, ten choices that, in their own way, could bring out the demons within him. But, there are those within the group that could bring about the destruction of the Sage with relative ease."

"Speak Piedmon!" the voice commanded.

Piedmon smirked. "Take your pick Mistress, among the the young souls, but I warn you to choose wisely. Producing too much anger could trigger something that even you, might not be able to live through."

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTT_

"We're lost." Tar said, her arms crossed over her chest.

"We are not, I just can't pinpoint our location on my computer." Izzy replied.

Tar glanced at Sora and rolled her eyes. "So...we're lost."

"Are not!!" Izzy insisted.

The group was, once again, lost. From Wicked Woods they had travelled north, or so they thought, and they expected to run into Windy Glen sooner or later, but now they were beginning to have second thoughts.

"Relax you two, Tai and Meg should be back soon." Mimi said laughing. She started laughing even harder when she saw Sora's eyes go green with envy. "I see someone's a little jealous." she whispered joyfully.

"Who me? Jealous? Jealous of what? _Meg_? Haha don't make me laugh. Why would I be jealous of Meg?" Sora said laughing nervously.

Tar walked over to her best friends upon hearing Sora mention her and Meg. "Well, I'll give you one reason." She pointed behind her where Tai and Meg were coming back from the city nearby.

"Face it Sora, you've got competition." Mimi stated.

Sora glared at her. "Competition for what?"

"Quit playing dumb Sora. You know exactly what...or should I say _who."_

"Who?" Sora asked, continuing to play dumb against Tar's instructions.

"Alright, Sora, if you admit that you like him, I promise that we'll quit teasing you." Mimi said, glancing at Tar, who nodded in agreement.

Sora glanced at the two, she didn't believe their "promise" for even a second, in fact, more than likely they would probably tese her _more,_ but...after all, Mimi _was_ the biggest flirt she knew, Tar _was_ his sister, and she trusted Kari's judgement and opinions.

"Okay..." she lowered her voice to just barely above a whisper. "I do like him."

The two girls squealed loudly while Kari laughed at them.

"What are you two screaming about?" Joe asked, covering his ears with his hands.

Tar and Mimi instantly composed themselves, realizing that they had captured the attention of all their fellow travellers. They grinned and settled themselves among their small group again.

Izzy tore his confused gaze away from Mimi and Tar, rolling his eyes.

"What was that all about?" Tai asked Izzy.

Izzy shook his head. "Girls."

Tai laughed.

"So what did you find out?" Izzy asked.

"Well...not much, we're near Windy Glen, but that's about all they would tell us." Tai admitted.

"Aha!! So I was right." Izzy exclaimed, casting a triumphant look in Tar's direction.

Tar rolled her eyes and Mimi giggled.

"I wonder what would happen if Izzy _wasn't _always right?" Tk mused.

"Oh that's an easy one." Tar said rolling her eyes. "Pigs would sprout wings, chocolate wouldn't be made of sugar, and it would be the end of the world as we know it."

Izzy glared at her but went back to his computer.

Sensing the hostility between them Joe quickly changed the subject. "So uh...I guess we're headed to Vile Valley, right."

"Vile Valley?" Ebony asked. "What do we know about it?"

Sora winced at the sound of it.

Tai sensed her emotions take a turn for the worst

"You okay Sor?" he asked sitting beside her.

Sora slowly nodded.

"Sor, what happened wasn't your fault," he persisted.

Everyone was listening to their conversation, confused as to what they were talking about, but no one had enough courage to ask. Sora, who was rarely upset, looked like it was taking all her willpower not to burst into tears.

Mimi glanced at them, it was taking every ounce of patience she had to quit from blurting out her questions, but the silence didn't last long.

"What are you talking about?" Mimi asked.

Tai gave her a look that said "Shut up Meems" but Mimi didn't get the hint.

The group was silent as they waited anxiously for Sora's answer.

Sora gazed at the ground.

"You don't have to tell them now if you don't want to." Tai whispered in her ear.

She slowly shook her head.

"No, they need to know. Matt and Joe have told us of their experiences in Corpse Cove and Wicked Woods, now they need to know what the Valley is capable of." she explained.

Tai nodded.

"Vile Valley remains a mystery to outsiders. It's more of a tomb than a valley, because those that go in...don't come back out. It's inside a deep chasm and a thick silver mist blankets the valley, but it doesn't just cover the ground, it stretches over trees and anything else that actually thrives down there.

That's why it's so dangerous, you can't see, the mist completely blinds and confuses you. You could be walking for hours in a huge circle and not realize it until it's too late.

The mist is also dangerous in another way, spending too much time in it, breathing in the fumes of the dead and the dark magic within will eventually cause everything to become hazy. Your mind won't think straight and will start producing illusions, then your muscles will slowly stop working until you are completely paralyzed, then, if the creatures of the mist don't take you or kill you, the mist becomes poisonious to your lunges and you will die." Sora explained. "Me and Tai know this from personal experience."

Tar looked at her brother expectantly. "You?"

"Don't be upset Tar." Sora said without meeting her eyes. "I made him promise not to tell."

Mimi blew a strand of her hair out of her face and and looked up at the sky. "Tell us what!"

"Mimi, this is obviously hard for Sora to talk about so relax." Joe said calmly.

Mimi was about to argue with him, but instead turned to her friend. Her eyes held the saddness of an angel who lost her wings and Mimi immediatly regretted rushing her into an explanation.

She sat down on the other side of Sora, suddenly finding her shoes very interesting. "I'm sorry." she said sincerely.

Sora nodded, but did not raise her head to acknowledge her, she appeared to have gone back in time to when that fateful day occured seven years ago.

"We...didn't think the rumors about the Valley were true, and to prove it we decided to go there, just for a few minutes." Tai added.

"But when we got there we knew we couldn't stay. Both of us could sense it." Sora continued.

"So we were about to leave when..."

"The ground beneath us broke and we fell into the unfamiliar turf. I-I thought we were going to die." Sora stated.

"But we didn't." Tai pointed out definatly. "Instead we got caught by these really thick vines. They broke afterward, but they kept us from being splattered across the ground." "But then we were trapped. The sides of the chasm were too steep to climb, and even if they weren't it would've been too dangerous since the moist climate was perfect for moss and algea to grow along the rocks." Sora explained.

"Not to mention we wouldn't've had time anyway." Tai stated.

"Yea, the moment we landed something came out of the trees, grabbed us and started dragging us in different directions. We wouldn't be here if it weren't for...my dad." Sora burst into sobs.

Mimi hugged her friend and Tai placed a hand on her shoulder.

"When I got there Sora's dad was...gone. The darkness took him instead of us. We managed to get out because Mr. Takenouchi left a rope hanging over the cliff." Tai finished.

"So that's why you came home early." Kari realized.

"Do you know what this...thing was ?" Ebony asked.

Sora and Tai shook their heads.

"So you didn't try to see who it was?" Joe asked.

"Hey, we barely had time to figure out what was happening, let alone try to see _who_ it was." Tai replied, laying back on his elbows.

"Hey guys." Izzy called. "Genni sent me an e-mail!!"

This stopped all conversation at once. In the blink of an eye everyone was crowded around Izzy and his computer.

_Greetings Sages and Xidigan Heiress,_

_You have obtained 3 of the ten crests, but the secrets to activating them rely in that book you found._

_But asking me how to unlock the book would be as helpful as asking a blind person to read you this e-mail._

_Perhaps you should visit Azulongmon before proceeding to Vile Valley. I sent the coordinates to your computer, Izzy._

_Rough times lie ahead Sages, be strong._

_Genni and the GLs _

"Azulongmon? He's one of the digimon Gods right?" Kari asked.

"Yea, your's and Tk's" Joe replied.

"Hmmm..."

"What's up Izzy?" Tk asked.

"I'm just wondering, why would Genni contact us now? Their location is top-secret and if this e-mail fell into the wrong hands they could trace it and find Genni and our parents." Izzy mused.

"So what're you saying?" Meg asked.

"I'm saying that this could all be a setup. We don't know where Azulongmon resides, so these coordinates might be fake as well." Izzy concluded.

"So our options are to follow the directions and risk being caught again, or we go straight to Vile Valley." Matt stated.

"Izzy, where do the coordinates say Azulongmon lives?" Tai asked.

"About three days North of here." Izzy replied. "There arn't any landforms in that area at all."

"Very suspicious, if there arn't any landforms we'll be spotted easy, and using certain elements would be dangerous in an open area." Ebony said.

"Tar, how long do you think it would take you, using your powers, to get there and back?" Tai asked.

"Probably about half the time." Tar said shrugging.

"What if you and I go? We'll know if the message is real or not and it'll be twice as fast." Tai suggested.

"I don't know Tai...it might be safer if-"

"If what?" Tai asked.

Tar bit her lower lip, trying to figure out a way to express her concerns without sounding offensive. "Uhh...it might be safer if...umm..."

Tai held up his hand, "If someone with powers went?"

"Tai, don't take it personally, but-" Sora tried to explain.

"No. I get it." he stated, standing up.

"Tai-"

Matt grasped her arm. "Let him go Sora." he stated calmly.

"What is wrong with me!" he asked himself angrily. "Why have my powers suddenly just stopped?"

When he figured he was far enough away from his friends he leaned against a tree and glared at the sky.

"Why am I different?" he asked quietly.

"That's what I want to know."

Tai narrowed his eyes but didn't move otherwise. "Leave me alone Gem, I don't want to put up with you right now."

Gem was startled by his response. No fear? No rage? "Is that _all_ you have to say to me?"

With his back still facing her he replied. "Yes."

She clenched her fists and appeared in front of him, but he didn't falter. "Something about you is...different."

"I'm powerless, but I thought you already knew that." he snapped. His eyes flashed red as he continued glaring at her.

Gem smirked. "Awww...feeling helpless?" She smiled with satisfaction as his eyes flashed again, only longer this time. "Your "friends" have no use for you without your powers do they?"

"Do you have a death wish?" Tai asked while his eyes were red. When he realized what he said he wore a confused expression. "What?" he asked himself.

"It's your dark side Tai. Your anger is giving him strength." Gem explained.

Tai's eyes narrowed at the thought of the encounter with his dark side.

"So what angers you more Tai, the fact that your friends are all treating you different or that you have to stand on the sidelines while your friends take on whatever dangers cross your path?" Gem provoked.

Tai's gaze darkened.

"I know how you can get your powers back Tai." she said menacingly. "Give in to the darkness in your heart. Let it consume you."

"I'm not so easily persuaded Gem. I know you'd say anything to get me and my friends on your side." Tai said smugly.

Gem glared at him. "Alright, I guess we'll have to do things the hard way." She raised a hand and shadows poured around him.

He let out a surprised gasp, clenched his fists, and shut his eyes tightly, and, to Gem's astonishment, she was thrown backwards!

"Don't _EVER_ do that again." he hissed, opening his eyes to reveal the blood-like crimson color they had transformed to.

Gem quickly composed herself, remembering the task at hand. "Taichi, I need a word."

"Then let me suggest a dictionary. Dark side or not, I have nothing to say to you that wouldn't appear sensored." Taichi replied calmly.

"Still mad?" she asked sarcastically.

"Congradulations are in order, you are the winner of the "Who I want to kill first" contest. Please step down to claim your prize." he smirked.

"I'd be insulted if I wasn't." Gem said casually.

Taichi's dark eyes met her's "So what exactly _do_ you want?"

"What? Can't old friends speak to one another without being accused of wanting something?"

Tai turned to her. "Old friends, hm., maybe, but _you, _no."

She sighed, "I guess there's no use beating around the bush is there." She smiled arrogantly. "A book Taichi. A book your light side and his friends have in thier possession." she replied.

"The Heir's Journal." he stated simply. "And why would _I_ help _you_ get this source of power? What's in it for me?"

"A bargain." Gem said.

"I'm listening."

"Get the book for me and I will grant you complete control over Tai's mind." Gem explained. She grinned when she saw the faintest flicker of interest cross his face.

"And why would _you_ do that for _me_?" he asked suspiciously.

"We're on the same side, that's why. And I know that you're a powerful ally." Gem replied.

"Uh huh...but you see, that still has me _helping_ you. Past experiences have taught me not to help anyone if _I_ can help it."

"What about _Aros_?"

Taichi smirked. "Aros? Yea right, she's almost as bad as you, if not worse."

Gem's eyes flashed at the reminder of their rivalry.

Taichi grinned maliciously.

Gem quickly shook off the flashback, remembering the task at hand. "So do we have a deal?"

"What, about the book?" he asked smirking. "Hmm...no."

Her eyes narrowed slightly "Just consider my offer Taichi."

"I already have, and my answer hasn't changed in the last five seconds."

Whatever patience Gem was given was running dangerously low, she needed him on her side or her whole plan would backfire. If persuasion wouldn't work she would have to find other means to get what she wanted.

"Hm, looks like I was wrong. And here I thought you were the evillest of all the dark sides." Gem smirked. She could tell she had his attention when she noticed his eyes darken and muscles tense. "Maybe I would've had more luck with Yamato."

"And what makes you say that." Taichi asked, sounding amused.

"Matt turned to darkness willingly, so Yamato must have a small influence on him...unlike you." she replied.

Taichi smirked. "I'm here now arn't I."

"Only thanks to Tai's power failure and blind anger." Gem stated. "But I didn't expect anything less than weakness from Tai's inferior half."

As soon as Gem breathed those words she felt the air around her get denser. Before she even knew what was happening she found herself flying backwards and slamming onto the ground.

She shook the dizziness and confusion from her brain only to be met with the fierce glare of _her_ usual victem.

"Inferior am I? How's it feel to be on my side of our "conversations"?" he asked smirking.

She stood up angrily, she refused to be beaten by him or any of the other Sages.

"Is this the part where I'm supposed to grovel for mercy." she asked sarcastically.

"No." he stated. He grabbed her neck and slammed her head into a tree. A dark aura surrounded him and soon enveloped Gem.

"This is." he smirked.

She struggled to escape his grip but the darkness was preventing her from escaping.

It tore at her flesh attempting to rip her skin off, scratched at her eyes, trying to pry them from their sockets. Blood was beginning to flow over her arms as gashes slowly spread over her body. Under his hand her neck was burning like fire, she couldn't breathe!

She opened her eye just a crack and saw that his eyes remained deadly, but he had a small smile on his lips. Just when she was about to give up hope of ever seeing another day again, he released her. She dropped to the ground, shuddering and allowing her tear-filled eyes to spill.

"How's it feel to be beaten by an inferior half?" he asked smirking.

She was about to answer when someone interrupted her.

"Tai!!"

Taichi grimanced at the sound of Sora's voice. He glanced behind him, but that was all the time Gem needed to escape. He turned back to where Gem had been and found her gone. He clenched his fists in rage but slowly felt himself losing control.

"I'll get you next time Gem." he hissed.

"Tai!!"

His eyes closed and he dropped to his knees, panting. When he opened his eyes again, they were normal.

"What...happened?" he asked himself.

"Tai!! Oh my Goddess are you okay?" Meg asked. "Tai, what've you been doing out here?"

"I...don't remember." he stated.

"What?"

"I don't even know how I got here." he admitted.

"Tai, you don't remember? You got upset and left. You've been out here for a while." Meg said.

Tai put a hand to his head. "I did?"

"You really don't remember?" Meg asked.

Tai bit his lip and tried to remember the last thing he did or said. "The last thing I remember was when I asked Tar how long it would take for her to reach Genni's coordinates, then everything goes blank. Nothing."

Meg smiled softly. "Well, on the bright side nothing happened, right?"

Tai paused for a moment before replying. "Yea. Right."

"Tai?" Sora yelled from somewhere in the distance.

Meg scowled.

"Sora!" he answered.

He and Meg stood up and walked towards Sora's voice.

"Tai, what were you doing out here?" Sora yelled as she walked towards him. "You've been gone for a while and we thought -" She stopped when she saw Meg.

They each gave the other a menacing glare that would've had Piedmon scared.

The glaring competition only lasted a second, but that was long enough to get the message out into the open.

"Guys?" he asked, noticing the hostility the moment the two laid eyes on each other.

"Come on, we should get back." Meg stated.

Sora nodded and turned to take her leave when Tai grabbed her arm.

"Tai what-?"

He held up a hand and she fell silent. They stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity before Tai broke it.

"What's going on between you and Meg?"

Sora shut her eyes and groaned quietly. This was the question she had been dreading.

"N-Nothing." she lied.

"Sora, you've never been a good liar." he said crossing his arms over his chest.

Sora sighed. "Really, it's nothing." She nervously bit her lip, averting her eyes away from him.

Tai gave her a long stare. She could feel his gaze on her, a hurt look he was more than capable of conjuring.

Finally he sighed and rolled his eyes. "Alright, I get it. Some things are better left being kept a secret, Like when we were at Windy Glen." A small smile formed on his lips. He lifted her chin up so that their eyes met, "But you have to keep up your part of our promise too."

She looked at him blankly but he only grinned wider in that childish way of his and turned to leave.

_Promise_? Then she remembered. _The one at Windy Glen, where we wouldn't keep secrets from each other... _She growled in frustration. _He had to play the guilt card._

"Tai! Wait!" she yelled.

She felt horrible. She remembered giving him a hard time back at Windy Glen when he wouldn't tell her about being a Sage, and now she was doing the same thing. Tai had told them everything that had happened to him on the Dark Contitnent. He was still holding onto his side of the invisable rope that kept their friendship strong, but she had let it slip through her fingers, and all because of a crush!!

_Damn emotions _she cursed angrily. She raced after him, but someone grabbed her from behind.

Her inital reaction was to scream, but they clapsed their hand over her mouth. She struggled vainly, trying to kick him or pry his hand away from her mouth, but all efforts were in vain, they would NOT move.

She narrowed her eyes and they started glowing. If she couldn't get out of this the easy way then someone _had _to get hurt.

A powerful gust of wind pushed her and her stalker into the air.

Surprised, he loosened his grip on her waist and she grabbed his arm and threw him towards the ground.

He screamed as he made contact with the ground. Sora jumped down and stood above him. "Who are you?" she demanded.

In the moonlight she could make out some of his features; Honey brown hair that hung in his eyes, which were bright blue. He had baggy jeans and a black T-shirt. But what shocked her was that he was no older than she was!!

"Whoa, easy there angel." he said quickly, Sora noted that he had an accent that she had never heard before. "The name's Trigger. And I wasn't gonna hurt you, I was just gonna rob you."

Sora's eyes narrowed.

Trigger sighed. "Probably not the best thing to say, right? By the way, how the heck did you do that...thing you just did?"

Sora didn't reply.

"Oh I get it, big secret right. Well...can all of you do stuff like that?" he asked.

"All of you?" Sora asked.

"You know, all those guys you were with."

"AHHHHH!!!!!" Mimi's scream pierced the night.

"Mimi!" Sora exclaimed. Completely forgetting about Trigger she raced back to her friends.

When she got back though, everything seemed under control.

None of her friends had a scratch on them, although Trigger's gang of seven were either laying unconscious or bound by something.

But her attention was immediatley drawn to Mimi. She had one of them bound by a bunch of tree branches and was giving him most malevoent look Sora had ever seen her give to anyone.

"What happened?" she asked Ebony.

Tai, Tar, Matt, Meg, and Tk were desperatly trying to hold back their laughter, Izzy and Kari were trying to persuade her not to kill him for whatever he had done, and Joe and Ebony were watching the scene with small smiles on their lips.

Mimi turned to look at her. "This filthy PIG grabbed my ass!!"

That did it.

Her five friends exploded with laughter, and those who weren't chuckled before trying to salvage what was left of their serious expressions.

"Heh heh, sorry about that love."

The laughter stopped abrubtly.

The group looked behind them to find Trigger standing with an amused grin on his face.

"You see that there's Stinger, and he's always been that way towards women. That's how he got himself kicked out of the orphanage back in Liabend." Trigger explained.

Mimi murmered several unpleasent words under her breath before walking over to Trigger.

"Who do you think you are!!" she demamded, placing her hands on her hips. "We were doing absolutly nothing to you and you and your group decide to ambush us!! Isn't there any decency on Digitania anymore!"

"Again, my apologies. We've been living on our own for some time and we have to steal to live. We thought you might have something of value with you. Although that seems highly unlikely." he replied. "Unless you're willing to give us those fancy little necklaces some of you have."

"Forget it!" Matt yelled, wrapping his fingers around his crest.

Trigger shrugged. "Then can you release my comrads so we can return home."

The Sages glanced at one another.

"Why should we trust you. You've done nothing that will prove you will keep your word and leave." Tai stated.

Trigger narrowed his eyes and Tai accepted the challenge.

"Alright, then how about you join us for dinner. Will that make up for our little raid?" he asked, still glaring at Tai.

Tai cast a sideways glance at his friends, it had been about a week since they left Piximon's and they hadn't had a decent meal in days. Some of the Sages were giving him pleading looks, while others seemed suspicious.

Swallowing his pride and ignoring his better judgement he decided to do what was best for the team.

"Fine." he replied.

Trigger shrugged, but all the Sages were in complete shock.

"...Tai are you feeling well?" Tar asked, putting a hand on his forehead.

"Yea I'm fine." he said shrugging.

"Tai, in all the years I've known you, you've NEVER given up an argument that easily, especially not with a guy who just tried to rob us." Izzy stated.

"That had to be a serious blow to your ego dude." Matt said smiling.

"Well if you guys think that I'm doing the wrong thing I'll just tell him I changed my mind." he said smirking.

Tar clamped a hand over his mouth. "No you won't. We're all for your decision."

"Right!" everyone agreed quickly.

"Are you lot coming?" Trigger asked, his group was standing behind him obediently.

Tai shook his twin's hand off and followed Trigger, the Sages at his heels.

TTTTTTTTTT

Gem collapsed to the floor of her castle on the Dark Continent the moment she returned. She was shaking violently, still not over the shock of what had just happened.

"Damnit!" she screamed.

"I'm guessing it didn't go well?" the unwordly voice questioned.

"What do you think!" Gem demanded. She clenched her teeth as she forced herslef upright. "I'm gonna kill him."

"No you won't." the voice darkened.

"You can't tell me what to do!" she yelled furiously.

"Gem, you know as well as I that they need to continue living...for now anyway. Otherwise we will never be freed from our prisons."

"I don't care!" she shouted.

"Yes you do. I can sense it. You want them to suffer as much as you have, and for some reason...you have singled out the Sage of Wind. Could your memories be returning?"

"Get out of my head Daemon! I may have listened to you this long, but I can stop any time I wish!" she raged.

Daemon chuckled. "If you could...you would've done so by now."

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT_

"I don't trust that guy."

"Oh please Tai, you're just upset because he's flirting with your girlfriend." Tar smirked.

"No. He tried to rob us, he's leading us away from any trail or civilization, _and _he's got a funny accent!" Tai stated.

"Okaaaay I was in complete agreement with you until the accent part." Izzy said.

"Yea, what does that have to do with anything." Mimi asked.

"Isn't it weird that none of us have heard it before." Tai commented.

"He came from a smaller city, remember, one that was taken over by Puppetmon months ago. For all we know they all could've talked like that." Joe explained.

Tai shook his head stubbornly. "No. I think he's lying about where he came from."

"Oh quit being so suspicious, he's giving us food! I thought that would make him good in your book." Matt laughed.

"Hey, how do we know he's not going to poison the food." Tar joked.

"Okay okay I get it!" Tai exclaimed. He sighed irritably, making it obvious that he was not going to enjoy what he was about to say next. "I'll give him a chance."

"If it makes you feel any better Tai, I don't trust him either." Joe stated.

"Thanks Joe." Tai said.

"You don't have to trust him, but he's giving us food and a place to stay so just don't show how much you don't like him. See tonight's a night to relax, we haven't had any good food or a decent place to stay in a long time so let's just forget about all-"

Sora's giggling interrupted Mimi's preeching and everyone turned to her.

Sora!! Giggling!!! Mall hating, dress loathing, kick ass soccer playing, tomboy Sora! Giggling was not something she did! And for all the Sages to hear her giggle, nonetheless _flirtasiously, _was a huge deal, a really HUGE deal.

"Strike one." Tai muttered murderously.

"It's a good thing Tai's powers are faulty, otherwise I'm not sure how much longer Trigger would live." Joe whispered to Ebony, who giggled.

"Well this is it. Home sweet home." Trigger announced at the mouth of a cave.

"Don't expect anything gormet from a place like that." Mimi muttered wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"Hey, it's gotta be better than the twigs, berries, and nuts we've had to live off of." Meg stated.

"Or so we can only hope." Ebony added.

Trigger stepped into his overly humble home and walked toward the back of it, which, sadly, didn't take long. It was rather small for a cave that was used to house a group of eight.

"Um...I don't think we're all going to fit." Izzy observed from the outside of the cave.

"What, in here? No of course not. Unless you would like to eat in our entrance chamber." Trigger replied.

"Entrance chamber?"

Trigger smirked mysteriously. "You could say that we, too, have a little magic up our sleeves."

"_Patefacio Specialis Chambers."_ Trigger murmered, moving his hands in a circular fashion.

Slowly, a hole in the wall opened, the rock grinding past each other created a hideous screech that was modified by the echo of the cave.

The Sages clamped their hands over their ears and waited for the heinous sound to stop.

When at last it had, it revealed a large black hole in the ground that sloped downward.

"Well, shall we?" Trigger asked, stepping into the darkness.

The Sages nervously glanced at one another but followed after.

_TTTTTTTTTTTTT_

Gem was standing atop of her castle beside a sisister looking gargoyle.

_How did I get into this mess, with the Demon Lords and the Sages and...everything? _

She thought back to the fateful day that she had turned her back on light.

Her father's green eyes, glazed and staring forward blankly into space, his black hair streaked with red blood. Her mother's screams for mercy as she was viciously murdered.

She shook her head, clearing the grievous visions easily, like she had for years.

She knew that if light did exisit on earth her parents would still be alive, her house would still be standing, and she would be safe at home surrounded by people who loved her.

Home. The sound of the word was unfamiliar to her ears and foregin to her tongue. She hadn't had a real home in years. Maybe that's why she got mixed up with the Demon Lords. Maybe they made her feel like...she had a purpose.

But there were those that also made her feel like she had a purpose. The Sages.

The rivalry she had between them made her feel important. Without her there would only be the conflict between the Dark Masters and the Sages, and that battle would soon come to an end. But she was smart. She knew how to play her cards, which was more than she could say for the Dark Masters.

_Idiots_

They were blindly trying to conquer Digitania with no idea of the power they were up against.

She rubbed her temples. Her thoughts had drifted back to earlier that evening.

Taichi was a far deadlier opponent than she had remembered. But what concerned her more than just the knowledge that his powers were still incredible was the fact that he was able to use them.

His powers were supposed to be shut down and yet he was almost able to kill her with dark magic!

The entire situation was puzzling. How the heck did he have magic if his powers were shut down.

Her thoughts suddenly turned to what Piedmon had suggested. After what happened today she was starting to wonder...perhaps it _was _possible.

_Only one way to find out. _she told herself.

She jumped to her feet and walked briskly into her bedroom. Inside was a large basin filled with a strange glowing liquid.

She stared into it, feeling its dark energy swarm around her and enfold her in a coccoon of darkness. She sighed happily at the feeling of it, clensing her of any troublsome thoughts or worrisome feelings.

She waved her hand just above the water's rippling surface and an image came into view.

"You called Mistress?"

"Yes. I have another job for you my loyal friend..."

TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Matt let out a low whistle when they entered the hideout.

"Wow, and you said you were living on your own?"

"Yea. It's not much, but it's home." Trigger replied.

"Not much! You've gotta be kidding me!" Izzy stated. "This place is huge!"

An underground cavern, possibly the size of Windy Glen, was what they were welcomed to. Different tunnels connected the large room to other smaller ones, making the whole system similar to a spider's web.

It wasn't beautifully decorated, but it did have acceptable looking furniture, and the mere size of the place was enough to take all attention off the miss-matched chairs and dusty wooden tables.

"Did you create this place?" Joe asked, admiring the sturdy domed ceiling above them.

"Nah, this place used to be-"

"AHHHH!!" Mimi and Tar shrieked.

"What?" Matt and Tai asked.

They were pointing above the entrance, both looking disturbed at the image hanging.

"Like I tried to say, this place was once a very popular branch of catacombs." Trigger stated, explaining the grisley figure of a human skelleton hanging just above the entrance with a tacky wooden sign reading "TURN BACK IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIFE".

"What's with the welcome?" Tai asked with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Wouldn't want any unwelcomed visitors is all." Trigger shrugged.

"Wouldn't want to be robbed?" Matt shot back.

Trigger glared at the two darkly.

Tar stepped in between the two opposing sides, an overly innocent smile on her face. "Don't pay any attention to these two _morrons,_" she glanced at them at the corner of her eye, making sure they got the hint, "they treat all new people a little suspiciously. But they get better." She turned her attention back to Matt and Tai and mumbled so only they could hear, "At least they better."

Matt quickly nodded, knowing what the wrath of Tar was like from experience, but Tai barely noticed her threat, in fact he was barely listening to her at all.

All around him he was feeling...something. A strange new feeling his sixth sense was providing, the sort of feeling that left your skin crawling.

He was glancing around, trying to locate the source of the eerie sensation, but instead of leading to a certain person it almost seemed to linger in the very air.

_Maybe being in a room full of dead people is what's causing it_, but somehow he didn't think so.

"Shall we eat? I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving." Trigger stated.

"Me too." Sora agreed.

"Of course you _would_ be." Tai rolled his eyes.

The room suddenly hushed, everyone eyeing the duo carefully.

Sora spun on her heel to face him. "And what's _that_ supposed to mean!" Her voice echoed loudly through the silenced cavern.

Tai shrugged.

_Oh no _Mimi thought, she cast a worried glance in Tar's direction.

Tar nodded.

By now Tai and Sora were arguing, insults were being thrown back and forth and both tempers were rising.

"Guys, calm down!" Izzy yelled over the two of them.

Matt bravely stepped between the two.

Sora narrowed her eyes and a harsh wind picked up in the cavern.

This act of aggression instantly put all the Sages on guard.

Tai smirked. "Relax, she doesn't have the guts to do anything to me."

Sora laughed. "Care to test me, Taichi?"

"Go ahead." Tai replied.

Sora shook her head slowly, her eyes deadly. She raised her hands, both of them glowing.

"Sora!" Mimi said warningly. She grabbed one of her wrists and pulled it out of shooting range.

Sora took a slow, deep breath and the aura ceased.

She turned her back to him and smirked. "Oh Goddess forbid anything from happening to Taichi. After all, without his powers he's really of no use to anyone."

Tai's eyes flared, but Izzy and Matt grabbed him before he could do any damage.

"What is wrong with you two!" Joe yelled.

Tai and Sora blinked a few times, confusion written on both their faces.

"Did you just call me Taichi?" Tai asked Sora.

Matt and Izzy felt Tai's muscles loosen and they unwillingly released him.

Tai and Sora looked at one another, then at their audience.

"...I guess I did..." Sora replied.

You could practically see the question marks above the Sage's heads.

"Hey, this is just like earlier." Tai realized, "When you guys said I left."

"What could've happened?" Sora asked.

"Well it's all a big mystery, one that can be solved after we eat." Trigger interrupted.

Everyone looked at him with surprise.

"Umm...this is kind of important. I think dinner can wait." Matt disagreed.

"Aww...Seriously?" Tar asked, placing a hand over her rumbling stomache.

"No, we can figure this out later." Tai stated, casting a suspicious glance at Trigger's gang.

Everyone followed his gaze and nodded in agreement before following Trigger into the grand dining room.

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTT_

Myotismon rubbed his temples. "Puppetmon, too, you say?"

LadyDevimon nodded gravely, but there was a small smile on her lips. "Good ridance to the little verman. I didn't expect him to last long either, far too immature for his title."

"LadyDevimon, I know of your distaste for him but-"

"Distaste? Distaste! More like repulsion! I loathed the little creature, hated him with every fiber of my being." she yelled.

Myotismon rolled his eyes as the female dark master continued her raving.

"I would've killed the little scoundrel if the Sages hadn't beaten me to it, I-"

"Peace LadyDevimon. He's gone now, so you may celebrate all you like." Myotismon stated. "But with his death comes dire consequences. The Sages have now gained another crest." He rose out of his chair and stood before the demoness. "I sense their power growing stronger with each passing day. If we don't kill them soon they will kill us. Is that what you want Mistress?" he demanded, his fangs barred and flashing in the dim light.

"Of course not my Lord, I only meant-"

"It is now up to the five of us to kill them. Even with all our magic and all our power I'm not sure that the five of us will stand a chance against the power of the Ten Sages. And you feel that this is a time to be celebrating!" he backhanded her across the face out of anger.

"Foolish wench." he spat, sounding morally disgusted with her little-minded sense of jubilation. He turned his back to her and stood before his chair, muttering curses to everything ranging from heaven to hell.

LadyDevimon placed her gloved hand on her chalk-white face, now rosey due to contact with the back of Myotismon's hand.

"Where are Piedmon and Devimon?" Myotismon questioned. "I haven't heard from them for several days." His eyes darkened with suspicion as he asked this.

LadyDevimon narrowed her eyes. "Oh, were you addressing me, my Lord, or the foolish wench you mentioned mere seconds ago?"

Myotismon turned his hate-filled glare towards her, but decided to play her little game for the sake of learning what little knowledge she had. "Mistress LadyDevimon," he began, "would you happen to have any idea where Piedmon and Devimon are?"

"Well, since you asked _so_ nicely," she replied coldly, "I will tell you that Devimon is where he is supposed to be, in his domain, Shadow Realm. Piedmon, however, has been more like a phantom as of late, showing up for a few hours before disappearing."

"I wish to speak with him" the vampire announced. "If you come into contact with him, alert me immediately."

LadyDevimon nodded and bowed her head before exiting Myotismon's chamber.

She shut the large door behind her, making sure that it latched before continuing down the gloomy hallway.

She constantly kept her ears and eyes sharp, glancing around at the slightest sound or the smallest of glimpses.

She hastened her steps until reaching the sanctum of her room, knowing that this was the only room in Myotismon's castle that was safe. She wasn't worried about being harmed, but Myotismon had ways of uncovering the most hushed of secrets, and by far this was the most hushed of them all.

She leaned against the door for a moment, relishing the feeling of safety, away from Myotismon and the other Dark Masters.

"I was beginning to wonder when you were going to return."

LadyDevimon spun on her heels, surprised to hear somone's voice other than her own in this room that was solely given to her.

"Piedmon!" she gasped in surprise.

Piedmon paid little heed to her as he twirled a rolled piece of parchment in his fingers.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, her shock wearing off and anger boiling in her veins due to the intrusion.

Piedmon laid the paper on his lap and adjusted one of his gloves to better fit his hand. He turned his cool gaze to the fallen angel before him. "LadyDevimon, I have a proposition for you."

LadyDevimon crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the wall, a sign for him to continue.

"As of late, you have more than likely noticed my frequent absences." He paused to make sure she was following before continuing. "These absences are due to a new...calling, I suppose you could call it. You and I both know that Myotismon holds no sympathy towards any of our fellow brethern's deaths. I believe that his intentions are to allow the Sages to kill us all one by one until he is the only one left. But he has a trumph card up his sleeve Mistress, I can tell from the look in his eye that he has thought this through and knows how to kill them without our help."

"I'm sorry Piedmon, but you spoke of a proposition?"

"I'm getting to that." he stated. "He has a trumph card, but so do I." As he said this he pulled a deck of cards from one of his long red sleeves. He shuffled the deck of cards a few times before pulling the top card off and tossing it towards LadyDevimon. The card floated in front of her, revealing the Queen of Hearts, the only differences being the heart was black instead of red, and in her hand she held a bouquet of black roses.

LadyDevimon stared at it for a moment, not quite understanding its meaning.

"I have the Queen of Darkness on my side Milady. She has her own plans for the future, and it is my belief that they will be in our best intrests to follow her instead of Myotismon; the blumbering idiot." Piedmon stated.

"And what exactly are her grand ideas?" LadyDevimon questioned.

"For one, she plans to use the Sages' magic to assist her, like tools, instead of killing them and letting all that power go to waste like Myotismon plans to do." he replied.

LadyDevimon knitted her brows together in thought.

"I will not force you to join her LadyDevimon, but judging by how you are treated amongst the Vampire King and his court of fools I presume it would be in _your_ best interest."

While listening to this part of his speech she carefully coyed her reddened cheek. "Perhaps it would." she stated.

Piedmon grinned. "Then you will join us?"

LadyDevimon's eyes shot up and the deadly edge returned. "I never said yes, but if you recall I said perhaps. So I will say it again just to make sure you have it branded into your puny mind, _Perhaps_ I will join you in the mutiny of a fellow Dark Master."

"Fair enough Mistress." Piedmon replied. "Now I must take my leave." He spun around and held his palm up to a mirror in her room. Blacks and purples swirled on the mirror's surface, but Piedmon stepped away from it as a thought crossed his mind. "In case you haven't realized, this is top secret, you mustn't tell a living soul the information I have passed to you."

With these parting words he walked towards the mirror and disappeared in a flash of black light, leaving LadyDevimon's room the way it had been before he arrived.

She stared at the mirror, an evil smile creeping upon her lips. She looked at the card again and tucked it into her boot.

"Yes, perhaps I will Piedmon."

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTT _

Trigger smirked with amusment at the spectacle occuring before him.

It wasn't every day that he and his followers were hosts to anyone important, nonetheless those that held Digitania's future in their hands.

They were all seated around in the cozy kitchen, which was nothing special, but what with their honored guests, Trigger ordered that all the chairs be matching and all the food be served on the finest of dishes, which meant that the dishes only had a few cracks in them.

The wooden floors were old and creaked, and the elegant wallpaper was beginning to peal, but the warmth could be felt within the contrasting home.  
He glanced at all their faces, memorizing every detail of their features. The identities of the Sages could one day come in handy.

For a split second he caught the eyes of Matt and Tai, who were sitting on the opposite side of the table. It appeared to Trigger that they, too, had been observing for any possible threats.

So far dinner had proceeded normally, the only thing that seemed to be bothering about half the people in the room was the awkward silence.

Other than a few words spoken between neighboring diners, it was relatively silent.

Kari shifted in her seat uncomfortably. The food was very good, but she was starting to reconsider the idea of staying with the band of misfits.

The only one who didn't take notice of the passing glances from the other 16 people in the room was Tar, who was wolfing down plate after plate of the buffet laid before them.

Joe was watching her intently, wondering how she was swallowing the mountains of meats, vegetables, and breads without needing CPR.

Mimi was glaring intensely at the young man who seated himself conviently beside her. Apparantly, he hadn't taken the hint that she **did not** like him.

Stinger _was_ very handsome, she hated to admit, shoulder-length black hair and the bluest eyes she had ever seen. _Probably used to getting whomever he wants. _she thought rolling her eyes.

She glanced around at all the unfamiliar faces. Trigger had introduced them just before dinner and she had already matched names with faces.

There was Wasp, who had blonde hair and hid his eyes behind a pair of black sunglasses. She hadn't seen him take them off all night, and wondered if he ever did.

Duke, who's red hair was almost the same shade as Sora's. Mimi figured he must be Trigger's second in command.

Fang, who had shaggy white hair and, creepy enough, red eyes. He instantly reminded Mimi of a vampire and she assumed that was how he recieved his name.

Claw had straw colored hair and evergreen eyes that scanned the group keenly, like a wolf.

Hornet was the gang's only female, she had short lavendar hair that barely reached her shoulders and saphire eyes, she had an attitude that the Sages had already wittnessed and didn't dare test.

The final member was called Snake, and he seemed very capable of snaking out of anything. He had oily black hair and dark eyes that watched everything. Mimi shuddered when he caught her gaze, feeling those fierce eyes upon her.

"Tell me Sages, how has your journey been so far? Encounter any dangerouse foes along the way?" Trigger asked.

Tar's attack on the buffet paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. She cleared her throught and rested the utensil upon her plate. "Plenty."

"Really?" Trigger said, leaning forward with interest. "Please continue."

"Why so curious all of the sudden?" Matt asked suspiciously.

"Is curiousity a crime?" Trigger asked defensively.

"It can be." Izzy replied.

"Then by all means, arrest me."

Sora slammed her drink on the table with a loud clatter. "Can we please quit arguing! I don't even know _why_ all of you have formed a rivalry with one another. This is one evening where we won't have to worry about the Dark Masters _or_ Gem, so can you guys _pretend _to like one another?"

Tai chuckled from his seat. "_You're_ one to talk Sor."

Sora turned to him. "What?"

"Doesn't this situation seem familiar?" he asked.

Sora averted her gaze to the floor without realizing it.

Tai stood up. "Thanks for the food Trigger, but I think we should get some sleep."

Trigger nodded in agreement. "Of course. Hornet, why don't you show them to their rooms." Trigger suggested.

Hornet nodded and motioned for them to follow her through the twisting corridors.

Before proceeding any farther she took a lantern from a hook on the ceiling. "Stay close," she instructed, "if you get lost in here it could take days to locate you"

They nodded before following.

She haulted in the middle of a long passage and turned to the group. "Alright, mediator and Princess are in this one," she said, pointing to Sora and Mimi. "Don't get up and leave the room under any circumstances. In the morning me or one of the others will get all of you up and lead you back out. That goes for all of you."

She continued down the catacombs and stopped at another door five rooms away from where they left Sora and Mimi. "The two blondes are here." She opened the door for them before continuing onward.

After another five rooms she stopped and turned to face them again. "The two sisters are here."

After they passed six doors she stopped. "Amazon and Red in here."

After about eight rooms she stopped, this time without turning around and stated. "Laptop and four-eyes are here."

Izzy and Joe paused before enterinng. "Wait, what about Tai?" Izzy asked.

"My orders are to give Spikes the room two doors down."

Tai glanced at his friends and gave them a reassuring smile. "Don't worry guys, I'll be fine. Besides, it's just two rooms away."  
Joe and Izzy glanced at one another uncertainly but shrugged and entered their room.

Hornet started walking again and Tai followed.

"Who gave you these orders?" Tai asked when she stopped in front of the final room.

She glanced at him, eyes narrowed. "Curious little snoop aren't we? Well, I got them from Trigger, obviously." She tossed the door open and stepped back. "Remember what I said, don't leave, unless you want to get lost." With this final word of advice she turned around and began walking the long way back.

Tai peered into the room as he stepped inside. Truth betold, he wasn't too thrilled about staying in a strange place by himself, but he wasn't one to broadcast his uneasiness.

The room was simple, a cot in the corner with a few blankets, a small table with a chair on the opposite wall, and a few small lamps illuminated the room with a flick of a switch. But the strangest thing about his room was how high the ceiling was, in fact, it was so high that there was a window at the top that Tai guessed had a perfect view of Vile Valley.

He didn't like the feeling the room gave off, but he didn't really have a choice in the matter.

With some reluctance he walked over to his "bed", slipped off his shoes, and climbed beneath the cotton blankets. He stared at the ceiling for a while as he tried to fall asleep.

Noises of all kinds kept him on edge for a while. Scratches were comming from the doors, whispers from the winds were finding their way into his room to tell him of their wittnessed web of secrets, and the strange silence coming from the Valley. Silence had a sound of it's own, and it was the very sound that sent shivers running up Tai's arms. Tai shut his eyes, trying to block out all of the sounds.

About halfway through the night his eyes grew heavy and he felt the persistant tug of sleep until he lost consciousness.

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTT_

Gem was pacing in her room, impatiently awaiting Piedmon's return from Spiral Mountain.

Since the Sages' first visit she had rebuilt it her castle and modified every inch. She now had the most advanced technology programmed into her security systems and defense mechanisms. The only one who get get into her base without notice was Piedmon, who travelled the same way she did, via dark magic.

"Where is that blasted fool!" she screeched.

"Calm yourself Gem, he will return shortly." Daemon commanded.

"Leave me Daemon. I have no reason to speak to you now." she snapped.

"You dare to speak to me in that manner," he bellowed.

"Yes, I do. Because without me you will never be reserected, not to mention behind glass you can't do too much to harm me." she replied cockily.

"Ungrateful little brat!" he raged. "Do you realize how many of my loyal subjects would've paid to have even a fraction of the power I've given you."

"Oh, you mean _before_ you were deleted." she smirked.

Daemon was beyond furious, but when Piedmon made his presence known, Meg's attention was focused soley on him and any insult he threw at her would've bounced off of her without her taking any notice.

"So? Is she going to join us." she demanded.

"Well, Mistress, she said perhaps." Piedmon replied.

"Perhaps? Perhaps! What the hell does perhaps mean!! I need a yes or no answer Piedmon! My God, you can't even ask a simple question without screwing it up!" Gem raged.

"Mistress, I believe that she only needs a bit more convincing." Piedmon said quickly.

"Like what!" she demanded, then an idea struck her. "You know what Piedmon...I think I may just have the answer for that." She stood up and raced back to her viewing glass in the next room.

"Loyal minion!" she addressed the image within the pool of liquid.

"You called my Mistress." the image replied.

"I have a new task for you. It will require all your skills, but if you succeed I will make it worth your while." she replied cooly.

"What task may I carry out for you Mistress?" he asked.

"The Ten Sages of Legend are within your base, correct?"

"Yes, Mistress." he replied.

Gem smirked menacingly. "I want you to..."

Piedmon had eavesdropped as long as he could, but Gem had lowered her voice so low that it was impossible to overhear her plan.

When her explanation was finished she returned to Piedmon and Daemon with a triumphant grin on her face. "I'm in a good mood at the moment, so I want both of you out." she stated sternly.

"Mistress, would it be too much to ask what your brillant plan is?" Piedmon boldly asked.

Gem's eyes narrowed. "Yes, in fact it would."

Piedmon took the hint and walked calmly out of her bedroom, while Daemon's image faded from her mirror.

She grinned when she was alone at last. "Time to check up on the Sages." she told herself. She laid upon her elegant bed and fell into a trance-like state.

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT_

Ebony was sleeping soundly in the room she and Meg were sharing.

Her cloak was tossed over the end of her cot, but she kept all of her weapons with her. Growing up in Wicked Woods taught her to _never_ let her guard down. Intense training taught her to wake if a feather dropped to the ground, even in her sleep she was alert.

Meg, on the other hand, seemed very relaxed while she slumbered. Her head was burried in the blankets she was given for the night, while her magic recharged.

The night was silent, something new to both young women. Even in the dead of night cricketts sang their melodies to keep the night alive. But being so near the Valley; where animals, people, and digimon feared to go, kept the darkness hushed.

Ebony awoke with a start.

She was at her feet in seconds, her hand on the hilt of her dagger.

"Meg," she whispered.

Meg groaned and pulled the covers further over her head.

"Meg," she whispered, more urgently this time. Ebony slowly started scanning the room, looking intently at every possible hiding place.

Meg sat up lazily. "What?" She rubbed her eyes and noted that her friend was in her fighting stance. "What's wrong Eb?"

"There's something, or someone, here." she whispered.

Meg looked around worridly. "Where?"

"Here," a deep voice answered. Meg didn't even have time to react before she felt a hand wrap around her mouth and the other grasp her wrists.

"Meg!" Ebony exclaimed.

While she was distracted, another captor tried to grab Ebony.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pinning her arms to her sides.

"Let me go!" she screamed.

The two captors smirked and started chuckling. "Looks like we got ourselves a fiesty one." Meg's captor stated.

Meg's eyes darkened and started glowing.

Ebony elbowed the man in the gut, causing him to drop her. She landed on her feet and round-house kicked him in the jaw. She turned to Meg but saw that her friend was in no need of assistance.

Meg was grinning deviously as she dusted her hands off. Her captor was laying in a corner, bright red slashes running down his arms.

"Nice going Meg." Ebony complimented.

"Thanks." Meg replied, her eyes returning to normal.

Ebony turned around, hearing the man stir. She walked over to him and punched him in the face, probably breaking his nose in the process.

"Come on, I bet the others are in danger too." Meg said, racing out of the room.

Ebony nodded and ran after her.

"Where do you think-"

Meg clapsed a hand over her mouth, and motioned to the side of the hallway that would lead deeper into the catacombs.

Ebony nodded and they silently crouched in the doorway of their room.

"Oy, I'll tell you. For a bunch of kids they can put up a fight." One of them stated.

"You're telling me. Had to knock this one out, otherwise he would've killed me with 100 volts of electricity. Had to cuff him as soon as he hit the floor."

Meg and Ebony moved backwards to make better use of the shadows. Three middle-aged men walked down the corridor, dragging with them three of their commrads.

"Joe, Tai, and Izzy." Ebony whispered.

Izzy was unconscious, his chin resting on his chest and his eyes shut, a dark bruise was beginning to color on the side of his head but he seemed fine other than that small detail.

Tai and Joe were still conscious, however, and were making the kidnappers' job as difficult as possible. They were both gagged, but you could guess their choice of words if their mouths were free.

"Oy, quit your struggling!" one of them fiercly said to Joe. He grabbed him by the collar and wacked him on the side of the head.

Ebony tightened her fists and looked about ready to run out there and kill all three captors.

Meg held on to her arm, restraining her from going warrior-mode and killing them.

Tai narrowed his eyes and slid his foot under Joe's captor's foot.

The man's eyes widened as his face met the ground. It took him a moment to realize what happened, but Joe had already bolted in the girls' direction.

Ebony waited until he was parallel with them before grabbing his shoulders and pulling him inside with them.

Joe whipped his head around in confusion until he saw Ebony and Meg.

Meg held her index finger up to her lips and Joe slowly nodded.

"Where'd he go?" the man blumbered. He turned around in a full circle, looking around in fearful confusion.

"Quit being an idiot. He went down there."

"Go catch him jackass, or it'll be you who explains to the boss why we're a Sage short."

The man's eyes widened and he sprinted down the tunnel, running right past the three crouching in the shadows.

"As for you." Tai's captor addressed him. He slammed him into a wall before continuing. "We'll just see how your bold move punishes you when we get to Vile Valley."

Tai rolled his eyes.

The man lost his patience and threw him to the ground.

Tai shook his head and glanced to his left. His eyes instantly widened when he caught sight of Meg, Ebony, and Joe hiding in the room.

They motioned for him to join them, but the kidnapper was already walking towards him. He wasn't about to risk them being caught so he stood up, and backed up a few steps, making sure the captor's attention was focused on him before sprinting down the tunnel. The two men were instantaneously in persuit of him, taking no heed to the slightly ajar door where three teenagers hid.

"Why the hell did he do that!" Meg exclaimed when they were out of earshot.

Joe made a muffled answer.

"Oh, sorry Joe." Ebony said, quickly untying his mouth.

"Thank you. What I was trying to say was, he wanted to make sure we weren't spotted." he replied,

"Well..." Ebony started. "At least we know where they're going."

"Right. So we'll have to follow them." Meg added.

"Only one problem." Joe stated. "THEY'RE GOING TO VILE VALLEY!"

"Right, and so are we." Ebony stated.

_TTTTTTTTTTTT_

me: Ooooooh cliffhanger!! Nasty little things arn't they!! lol. Well, hope u like the chapt!! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!

I'm not promising a quick update because I'm reading this god damn hell of a book "Great Expectations" for school and I'm seriously behind on my reading. So it's pretty much taking up all of my free time. (mumbles angry curses at evil book)

So anywayz, Hope u loved it!! LATERZ!!!

_**Sari Kamiya01: **HI!! I know i know, i'm sry, lol. You and Mika Takashi01 get marshmallows!!! (holds up a big bag of colorful sugary goodness). Nope, it's no coincidence, lol. Gem, is Meg's name in Digitanian. REALLY! Wow, great minds think alike. Matt x Tar just seem like a really cute couple , couldn't resist lol. THANK U SO MUCH 4 UR REVIEW!!! LUVED IT!! I'll update soon...hopefully. U GUYS ROCK!! LATERZ! _

_**AznSnostuff: **HELL NO WOULD I GIVE UP THIS STORY!! lol. I know i know, SRY!! Damn school and all it's evilness!! But here it is! YaY!! For waiting so patiently you get a cookie! YaY!! THANX FOR THE REVIEW!! U ROCK!!! LATERZ!_

_**YamiTai: **YaY!! Yea the fun stuff! You won't believe what i have planned for the future!! MUWAHAHAHAHA...ehem, sry.. Ooooh the Tai losin his powers part will lead up to something BIG in the next chapt!! lol, i just loooooove keepin people in suspense! THANX 4 THE REVIEW!!! U ROCK!! LATERZ!!!_

_**star: **THANK U!!! yep yep, and as u can see the fued between Sora and Meg is already having catastrophic consequences!! YaY DRAMA!! lol, yea. wait, update, you could be the next Dr. Seuss!! Well..uhh...hehe...hopefully you'll like Tar x Matt, lol. I've got some ideas that i think you'll really like concerning those two . Thanx 4 the tip, i'll try fixing it tonight! FOR BEING SO PATIENT U GET CHOCOLATE CAKE!! THANX FOR THE REVIEW BUDDY!!! i'll update as soon as i can!! U ROCK!!! _

_**Rayana** **Wolfer: **YaY!! THANK U SO MUCH!! I luved the last chapt too , probably my best work so far. This chapt is ehhh...okay, but i updated right, lol. Aww...u're makin me blush!! I'M SO GLAD U LOVE IT!! I kno! Tai and Matt argues are so COOL! Yea, after i submitted it, i reread it and thought that it needed a little more with the training session, but oh well . I luv big chapts too!! Dude, I LUV UR REVIEWS!!! AND LONG REVIEWS ARE JUST AS GOOD AS LONG CHAPTS!! lol, well i'm glad you don't mind waiting cuz it might take a little while to update cuz of school, lol, and i even left a cliffhanger, lol. i know i overuse this waaaaaay too much but, U ROCK!!! LATER REVIEW BUDDY!!!_

**_HyperAnimeGirl:_** _Yay!!! I'm so glad u love it!!! Did you ever finish reading it? lol, sry i don't remember wat u told me, short term memory loss. Thanx for the congrats , i think it's helped my writing alot . lol. THANX FOR THE REVIEW!!! U ROCK!! YaY!! U get a cookie for being such an awesome reviewer!! LATERZ!!! _

_**Priestess kurumi inu's sister: **RALLY REALLY GLAD U LUV IT!! lol. Thanx for the congrats , aww...you're so nice!! Hopefully I'll be able to update soon . THANX FOR THE REVIEW!!! U'RE AWESOME!!! Peace!!_

_**Crimson G: **Thanx . Glad you think so, i've been thinking about rewriting the first couple of chapters to make them sound better . Thanx for the tip on KH COM, it cleared up alotta the stuff that had confused me. Glad u like the story! I'll try and update soon!! LATERZ!!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinyuasha: **no i am not dead, lol. AWWW MAN!! Being the undead would be so cool, lol. kay so anywayz...SO GLAD U LUVED IT!! YaY!! Glad u forgive me, lol. THANK U for the congrats and all that . YaY U!! lol, U ROCK times INFINITY!!! lol. I'll try and update soon, but school is evil! U ROCK!!! LATERZ!! _


	14. Vile Valley part 2

me: (bouncing up and down) HI EVERYONE!!!

TF: Hey CS...whatcha doin?

me: Bouncin

TF: Why?

me: Cuz it's fun XD

TF: Good enough for me (starts bouncing) XD

Davis: You guys are weird...

TF: You JUST realized?

me: Man, and I thought I was slow

TF: You _are_ slow sweetie

me: SO ARE YOU!

Davis: Like I said...weird

me: SHUT IT DAVIS!! (pulls out snowball from thin air and throws it at his head!)

TF: Hey that looks like FUN! (also pulls out snowball from thin air and throws it at his head)

Davis: AHHHH!! THEY'RE ATTACKING ME!! (runs away)

me: MUWAHAHAHAHAH!!!

TF: Hmmm...we should use something more deadly next time...LIKE A FLAMETHROWER!!

me: OR A CHAINSAW!!

TF: OR A CHAINSAW FLAMETHROWER HYBRID!!

me: YEA!!!

Davis: Can I come back now?

me: Only if you join us on the dark side!

TF: Yes...join us Davis...We Have Cookies!

me: YaY COOKIES!! (types up several random keys on keyboard and two cookies as big as my head appear) It rox to be the all-powerful authoress.

TF: (nodds)

me: ANYWAYZ!! I betcha I kinda confused you guys in the last chapter, introducing so many things without any answers, WELL FEAR NOT!! This chapt is going to clear everything up! Plus two major events are gonna happen!! HOORAY!!

Readers: WHAT HAPPENS!!

TF: OMG it's SO cool you see-

me: You don't even know what happens!

TF: Oh yea well...How do YOU know, i might just happen to have psychic powers that i picked up in paris

me: Oooooh REALLY!! I have a question! Will davis ever get a brain?

TF: I don't need the cards to answer that question...NO!!!

Davis: HEY!!

me and TF: Awww we're just kidding Davis

TF: Trust me, if we didn't make fun of you then you wouldn't be consided a friend.

me: YEA! So every time we insult you, you should be thanking us!

Davis: Oooooh is that how it works?

me: yep. Okay Back to my story!!

**!!MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT!! **

Okay, well I was rereading my entire story while I was writing this and I REALLY want to change it. So in your reviews please tell me what you think about this idea. TRUST ME!! As you've all probably noticed, my writing has improved throughout this story, so by rewriting it the story will be LOADS better, and longer . I'm going to keep updating this story, don't worry! I might just write it as a remake... Is Digitania II a catchy title (lol), but I would really like to know your opinions on this plan of mine. Who knows, I might post my new first chapter and see how you guys like it , just tell me in ur reviews

OH ONE MORE THING!!!

**PRAISE THE MIGHT OF THE TERRORIZING TRIO** MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!

They're my buddies Taioraforeva11 and Digimaniac! Make sure you guys check out their stories too!! They're AWESOME!!!

Alrighty, now that that's done. **ON WITH THE FIC**!!!

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"Oh quit your complaining Joe," Ebony said, rolling her eyes. Normally she wouldn't talk to an alliance with such a gruff edge, but he was beginning to get on her last nerve.

"But Eb-"

"Joe." Meg said, her tone warning him not to push the two young women any farther than he already had.

"Okay Okay, no more complaining." he said, holding his hands up defensively. "But can I _express my concerns_?" He made sure to emphasize the last three words to ensure that he was **_not _**complaining.

Ebony wheeled around to face him, her eyes narrowed. She stepped up to him, arms crossed, her face almost touching his. "Fine."

Joe swallowed hard, _damn it's hard to concentrate with her...right...there_. He quickly masked his uncomforted facial expression and stared into her amethyst eyes with defiance.

Meg rolled her eyes, tired of standing there. "Do you two want a room or something?"

Instantaneously the two back away from each other, each trying to hide their flushing cheeks.

"Right. Well-" Joe started, cleaning his glasses nervously.

"Get on with it Romeo." Meg smirked.

Joe settled his glasses back on his nose and glared at her. "My only concern is, we don't know where they were taken. Vile Valley may not be as large as Wicked Woods or the Labyrinth, but it's just as dangerous and just as confusing. My suggestion is that we find a guide of some sort to get us through without problems."

Ebony tapped her index finger against her chin for a few moments. "You have a good point."

"Yea, but there's only two problems. One, who in their right mind would escort three kids into the Valley. And two, where are we supposed to find said crazy person. It's not like they have a booth outside Vile Valley with a neon sign reading "Free Tours"." Meg stated.

Joe opened his mouth to speak, but found that no words left. He really didn't have a solution to these dilemmas.

"Hmm...Meg, didn't you and Tai go to a town to get directions?" Ebony asked.

"...Yes." Meg replied. "Wait, you're not suggesting-"

"What if there was someone there that could take us." Ebony finished, ignoring Meg's half sentence.

"I bet if we searched long enough we could find _someone_." Joe said optimistically.

Meg sighed. "Okay, I really hate being the pessimist here but since Joe has obviously lost his mind I guess it's up to me. The people in that place would rather have their fingers chopped off than go near the Valley."

"What makes you say that?" Ebony asked.

"Oh, well maybe it was when Tai asked so bluntly "Are we near Windy Glen and Vile Valley?" and how they shuddered violently at the mere mention of it that kind of gave me the hint."

"There has to be _someone_." Ebony said almost desperately.

"Are there any other civilizations around this place?" Joe asked.

"I don''t know. Izzy's the one with the digital map on his computer, and Tar's the one with the outdated version." Meg said somberly.

"Walking around the perimeter would take to long. We don't know who we're dealing with since the villain sent flunkies. It could be the Dark Masters, in which case our friends probably don't have long to live. Or it could be someone who plans on giving us up to the Dark Masters in hope of some reward, which would give us more time, I wager. Or they could be a bunch of second-rate kidnappers in it for a ransom. Honestly, it could be anyone." Joe said, leaning against the wall of the tunnel.

The trio managed, with some difficulty, to get into the main chamber of the catacombs. But, with no plan, no knowledge of what they were up against, and no idea of where they were going they decided it would be for the best to remain underground until they figured out what to do.

"Well...if no one in that town will help us, then at least we could ask directions for the next town or city." Ebony suggested.

Meg leaned her back against the wall and slid into a sitting position. "That could take days. And Tai and the others don't have that amount of time. We need to come up with a solution now."

Ebony knelt to the ground beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder "Listen Meg, we're just as concerned for their safety as you are, but we can't charge into Vile Valley without knowing the area."

Meg sighed deeply. "I miss them. They always seem to know exactly what to do in any situation."

Joe snorted. "Trust me Meg. I've known most of them for years. They're probably just as clueless as we are."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT **

"Okay, I'm stumped."

"Run out of ideas already?"

"Took long enough."

Tai glared at his blonde friend. "Thanks for the encouragement Matt."

"Anytime." Matt replied, giving an overly enthusiastic thumbs-up.

"Alright you two, knock it off." Mimi said sternly.

Tai sighed and slouched on the ground next to her. "Think the others are fairing better?"

"If we're all separated like this, I doubt it." Matt replied. He walked over the door of his cell and placed his arm against it, leaning his forehead against his arm. Tai and Mimi were located in the two cells across from him, a barred wall separating them.

"Have you been taking killjoy classes from Joe?" Tai grinned, trying to make light of the situation. He glanced around the large room, although there really wasn't much to look at. Whitewashed walls, a melancholy window covered with dust and cobwebs, a few rats were nestled in the opposite corner of Mimi's cell (she made their presence known when she screeched and ran to the other side of the cage), and an aged door with rusted hinges and no doorknob.

He sighed and leaned his head against the brick. "Man, even the bricks are rougher in this place."

Mimi pulled angrily at the green collar-like band wrapped around her neck. "Speaking of uncomfortable." She dropped her arms with a frustrated sigh. "These remind me of those binds LadyDevimon used. Do you think she's behind this?"

"It's possible." Matt replied, unconsciously running his fingers over the smooth light blue strap around his own neck. "They defiantly keep us from using our magic."

"I don't think it's LadyDevimon." Tai mused.

"Why?" Matt questioned.

"We haven't heard from LadyDevimon in weeks. She doesn't know I lost my powers, but whoever's behind this does." Matt nodded, remembering that Tai wasn't given a power restraint when they arrived.

"She could have spies." Mimi suggested. Her eyes lit up as an idea formed in her head. "What if Trigger was with the Dark Masters!"

Tai and Matt turned to her.

"Wow Meems, that's actually sounds like it could happen." Tai stated.

Mimi beamed. "What do you think Matt?"

Matt ran a hand over the bars. "I've been wondering the same thing myself. Those hired men seemed to know their way around pretty well."

"And they knew exactly which rooms we'd be in." Tai noted.

"They had the opportunity, they knew things about us that no one else would, and they knew the area. I'd say we have a definite suspect." Mimi insinuated.

"Ha! I knew we shouldn't've trusted that guy!" Tai exclaimed.

Matt rolled his eyes. "You were right. There, I said it. But now we need to get out of -"

Their conversation was cut short by the sound of jangling keys. Matt jumped back from the bars and Mimi and Tai lept to their feet when the door was thrown open violently.

"...Brat thinks he can order me around, well I wouldn't be so cocky if I was him..."

A man at least forty slumped inside, he had to be at least six feet tall and was weighed down by heavy gold armor, an obvious symbol of his ranking. Badges gleamed on the polished surface, further announcing how important he was. He had a white goatee and icy blue eyes that scanned the trio closely.

Mimi watched him carefully and memorized exactly where he put the large ring of keys that unlocked the doors to their freedom.

"You three are to come with me." He stated, fingering through the different sized brass, gold, and silver keys until uncovering a small silver one. He placed the key in the small hole of Mimi's cell and turned it, unlatching the heavy iron bar. He swung the door open and allowed it to crash against Tai's cell, startling him. He smirked before turning to Mimi, "Don't get any ideas, this whole floor is under surveillance and there are guards at every corner. We were given orders not to kill you, but there was no command given that we weren't allowed to use force if necessary."

Mimi stepped out of the cell, she hadn't planned on trying to escape. They had been blindfolded during their long walk and she couldn't make heads or tails of where they were. Trying to escape would more than likely be suicidal.

The guard walked to Matt's cell next, once he found the right key he covered his hand over it before unlocking it. The girl wouldn't get too far if she attempted to escape, but he didn't trust the blonde one. His eyes were too much like a wolf's, keen to everything happening around him. Even as he unlocked the door and towered above him he wasn't able to tell what the boy was thinking, something he was very unaccustomed to after being a general in charge of a bunch of mindless imbeciles.

"Stand beside the girl." he commanded after opening the cell.

"The girl has a name." Mimi spat.

The guard ignored her and resumed to the task at hand. The last prisoner wasn't one that worried him too much, he did the math and found that there were eleven attempted captives but only ten Sages. This boy was the only one out of the captured bunch without an element bind, so he figured he must be the extra child, no powers, no worries. The only thing about this prisoner that bothered him was the intensity of his eyes. They weren't mysterious or filled with secrets like the blonde one's, but they held...something else. He pitied the one who got on the wrong end of a glare from those eyes.

"Line up, all of you, and don't even think about trying anything." The trio rolled their eyes in turn, ignoring the request of the guard.

The general slapped a hand on his forehead and dragged it down the length of his face. _I'm a four-star general that has lead numerous armies to victory and become an idol among war figures, and now I'm reduced to this. Babysitting a bunch of disrespectful brats that don't have an ounce of discipline in their scrawny bodies. _

"Alright, I tried doing this the easy way." he unsheathed a large gleaming sword, allowing the metal to sing. He pointed the tip of the weapon at each of their necks before halting on Mimi. "Now, as I said before, our orders were not to kill you, but I would feel no guilt in drawing blood from her neck."

"I don't believe you."

The guard turned his attention to the one without powers. "Excuse me?"

"You're not evil. So why are you here?" he elaborated.

The general's gaze hardened at the boy's comment. "I don't feel obligated to explain my actions to the likes of_ you_." To the annoyance of the general, the boy only shrugged in reply. Not a decent apology or even a decent response but they were running behind schedule. He walked to the back of the group and poked the tip of his sword into Matt's back. "Get going."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE CAN'T FIND THEM!!" The vampire digimon stood up from the table of gathered Dark Masters and threw his chair against the far wall, causing it to splinter into several different pieces.

"My Lord, you must remain calm in this time of great stress." Devimon stated, lacing his fingers together and resting his chin on them. "What say you, sister?"

LadyDevimon closed her eyes and reopened them, black spirals taking the form of her red eyes. "They're surrounded by thick fog, but that's as revealing as I can make it. I'm afraid my powers as a seer have been weakening as of late."

Myotismon glared at his alliances, trying to keep his temper in check. He clicked his fangs against his bottom set of teeth irritably. "We need to kill these little brats immediately. They've interfered with our plans long enough."

"What do you suggest Myotismon?" Piedmon asked smirking. _This should be good._

"I'm glad you asked, Piedmon." Myotismon grinned maliciously. "I've decided that we cannot risk one of our own again, we've already lost two of our comrades and we cannot afford to lose yet another."

"Comrades?" LadyDevimon snorted. "You have nerve to call those two idiots comrades, Myotismon, when you yourself looked about ready to celebrate when news of their defeat reached your ears."

Myotismon narrowed his eyes, "You believe I have false loyalty Mistress?"

"It's not that I believe you have false loyalties My Lord," Lady Devimon lied, "but it's far too obvious that none of us are exactly comrades."

Myotismon glared at her for a few moments, trying to find the thin line between truth and lie in her words. "Very well Mistress, I suppose you have a point."

Piedmon cleared his throat. "Well if it suits the rest of you," he cast a dark look at his fellow Dark Masters, "I wouldn't mind knowing this plan of your's Myotismon. After all, you have such high expectations for it."

Myotismon scowled at Piedmon's sneer, he sensed the sarcasm dripping off his tongue. "My plan, Piedmon, requires none of your bias statements."

Piedmon's lips tightened into a line at this outburst.

"My plan is quite simple," Myotismon stated, satisfied that he got the last word in their short battle of wit, "We send others to do the work for us."

"That's your brilliant plan!" Machinedramon bellowed angrily. "I'm sure the Sages could come up with a better demise for themselves than that."

An eruption of angry protests filled the dark audience chamber as four of the Dark Masters barked their disapproval.

"SILENCE!" he screeched, snapping out his red lightning whip and crackling it against the cobblestone floor.

Seeing the weapon of mass destruction being used against them brought all four of their insults to an abrupt halt.

"Now. I'm not just suggesting a few mere minions. I'm suggesting entire armies worth of dark soldiers whose only thought is to kill and rampage. I'm suggesting that we kill the Sages and Digitania along with it."

The Dark Masters were in shock after his proposal.

"Kill Digitania?" Devimon repeated. "Then what use will it be to us."

"You misunderstand. We kill Digitania's spirit. We terrorize and murder small numbers, therefore bringing Digitania into a state of fear. With the Sages gone the last of their hope will diminish and they will surrender without question, granting us the power the great leaders possessed. Then we can rule the way Digitania was meant to be ruled!"

Silence lingered a few moments after his speech. The four were silently debating on whether or not this was a good idea.

Machinedramon flexed his claws, the metallic clank and groans of the technology echoing throughout the room. "All in favor?"

LadyDevimon glanced at Piedmon before rising out of her seat.

Piedmon glared at her but remained defiant.

Machinedramon raised his metallic claw into the air.

Devimon glanced around, and hesitantly rose from his seat as well.

"Well, it's unanimous." Myotismon announced smugly, casting a triumphant look at Piedmon.

Piedmon scowled and pushed his chair back violently. "I wouldn't be so cocky Myotismon, this _is your_ plan after all, it's bound to fail." He took a knife from his boot and stabbed the table, in seconds flames erupted from the dent and the table became nothing more than a pile of gray ash.

Piedmon replaced his knife and walked out of the audience chamber with all his dignity still intact.

He held his head high as he strolled through the shadowed corridors, the moonlight hitting him every so often. He swiftly ducked into the first open door he came across and latched it shut.

Certain that he was not followed, he sliced his hand through the air and a pair of eyes appeared before him.

"Report Piedmon." Gem's voice commanded.

"We've got trouble Mistress."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"So...you're not much of a talker are you?"

Izzy roughly nudged Tar in the ribs and whispered through gritted teeth, "Don't irritate the guard with the pointy axe."

The guard eyed them without turning around, keeping his mouth shut tight.

"What! I asked a simple question. Geez, you try and make conversation and they just blow it in your face..." she crossed her arms over her chest and sulked.

Tk was walking slightly behind the two. His mind was wandering to where his brother and Kari might be. He stared down every corridor they passed and up every staircase, but this place was WAY too big.

"What're you thinking about Tk?"

Tk jumped at Tar's voice, he had been so deep in though that he hadn't noticed her standing beside him. "Just...worried."

She draped an arm around his shoulders. "Your girlfriend's fine, she's a Kamiya after all."

Tk smiled, he was used to his friends' teasing and learned to laugh with them. "I know. But our magic works best when we're together and-"

"Relax Tk. She survived the Dark Masters before we found you, she'll be fine." Tar said calmly, masking her own worry. She hadn't seen more than half of their group since Hornet led them to their rooms, and although she knew they wouldn't be killed, there were fates worse than death when dealing with the Dark Masters.

"Enough talking." the guard snapped.

Tar clapped her hands together. "Ah, so he _can _talk."

"Yes, and I have never met someone that I thought could annoy me as much as you have."

"Then...will you let us go? Or do I have to sick Tar's mouth after you." Izzy threatened.

"Hey!" Tar exclaimed. "If you think I'm annoying wait until you meet my twin brother and our friend Matt. Now those two are annoying, especially when they start fighting about nothing."

"Hell no. There's two of you!!" the guard exclaimed in mock fright.

"Is that sarcasm I detect!" Tar demanded.

The guard spun on his heels, causing the three of them to crash into his chest. He took the gleaming medieval axe that had been hanging on his belt buckle and pointed the blade at the trio, causing them to back up several steps. "All three of you, I want silence until we reach the audience chamber. Got it?"

Tar opened her mouth to object but Tk slapped his hand over her mouth and grinned. "Got it."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"Don't you people have any sense of urgency!!"

Ebony raised her hands over her head protectively as another shower of crushed rocks covered her with its reddish dust.

"Meg put him down!"

Ebony lowered her arms and rubbed the dust from her eyes. Her vision cleared, she turned back to the scene that had captured the eyes of many people and digimon passing by.

Of course, being the interesting spectacle that it was, it wasn't surprising that the number of onlookers had doubled in the last few seconds.

Meg had kept her temper under control as they asked each town member if they'd be willing to guide them through Vile Valley, none agreed, but Meg hadn't reacted in her usual violent nature. But this guy had crossed the line. Perhaps it was insulting how the three of them looked that set her off, or maybe all the overwhelming emotions that had been building in her chest were finally being unleashed on this young man who made the mistake of saying the wrong thing to the wrong person, but Ebony believed that Meg had been aggitated when he said that he "wasn't about to risk his neck for a bunch of kids that were already dead".

Joe also pittied the man for igniting Meg's temper which would have even Matt and Tai cowering.

She clutched his shirt collar in her fists hoisting him slightly above her against a red brick wall. Cracks had formed around his shoulders and head from the impact, explaining the dust and rocks. Her eyes were crackling with anger as their red hue began to take over, a black aura formed around her body, providing the strength needed to lift this guy off the ground.

"Puh-Please, I-I didn't know!" he pleaded.

"Didn't know that we needed help?? Well that's strange because I could've sworn we asked for it." Meg snapped.

"No, no, that you were the-the..."

"Sages." Meg finished. "Well now you know. So will you take us to Vile Valley so we can rescue our friends!?"

"I-I can't." he said fearfully, shutting his eyes tightly and bracing his shoulders for impact again.

"Why?" Joe demanded.

"You have to understand. I have a wife, and kids. I can't go into the Valley! I'll get killed!!"

"Did it even occur to you that without our friends both you and your family are dead anyway. The Dark Masters won't leave your pathetic town standing! They have no pity for simple farmers. They see a group of people and digimon living with one another and see enemies that could threaten their plans for domination." Ebony exclaimed in frustration.

"Listen, listen please. I have been in the Valley before, but not nearly far enough to be of any assistance to you."

"Then do you know anyone who can?" Joe asked, his patience was also limiting with this self-absorbed town.

"Well...there is a guy, he lives on the edge of our town. Strange little guy. Always alone. Only comes into town to buy small necessities, he grows his own food, so we really don't see much of him."

"And this guy knows about the Valley?" Meg asked.

"His father studied the Valley for 16 years, the kid's grown up with the Valley."

"Sounds like our guy." Joe stated.

Meg dropped the man and he fell to the ground. "Which way?"

Relieved that he was no longer the target of their mad quest he pointed toward the outskirts of town. "He lives by a little lake. Very close to the Valley. Never gets many visitors to say the least."

Joe followed his arm and turned back to him. "Thanks."

The man nodded before scurrying off home.

"Frickin coward." Meg mumbled.

"Yea well that's his problem. We've got enough of our own so let's find this guy and get out of here. These people give me the creeps." Ebony stated, walking swiftly toward the lake.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT **

"How did I get stuck with all these frigging bastards." LadyDevimon asked herself, rubbing her temples in irritation. "Valedictorian in my high school class for the dark arts and killing techniques, I posses all the qualifications needed to take over Digitania myself, including a vast knowledge of Digitanian politics, and yet I'm with these boneheaded dim-wits."

She leaned her head against the cool concrete walls of the emptiest room in the entire castle; the study.

Books upon books of dark magic, sacrificing, weaponry, symbols, advanced evil technology, and murder methods lined hundreds of bookcases. The walls were grey marble with electric lamps lining the walls and sitting on tops of tables. There was one large bay window with a red window seat that showed the relaxing view of a graveyard of Digitanian civilians that were slaughtered on the Dark Continent's dark soil. A painting, covered with grime and mold from years of aging, hung opposite of the window, although the picture itself had long since faded away the words at the top were loud and clear;

**_Obscurum coexsists per Lux lucis sic verto is_**

_(Darkness coexists with Light, so turn it.)_

LadyDevimon turned her head toward the painting and nodded her head in approval. It was the very phrase that she believed in. Light could be a powerful weapon if used properly, but Myotismon didn't seem to think so.

Myotismon wanted to destroy anything that he didn't particularily like or couldn't control. Light was one such thing. But what the fool didn't understand was that his fear of Light would be his downfall, if he knew nothing about Light he would surely be defeated by it. Light and Dark coexist, without Light there is no Darkness and vice versa.

_If Myotismon plans to destroy Light, he plans to destroy us all_. she thought bitterly. After Piedmon's ridiculious tantrum she had voiced her concerns for Light's saftey and to suggest a different approach, but the Dark Masters were far too stubborn for their own good and wouldn't hear of their plan being altered.

She shivered as a burst of cold air fell around her shoulders and blew her silver hair about. She turned angrily to the window and watched one of the small frames rock gently in the cool wind. She stood up, knocking her chair over without a second thought, and stormed over to the window. She did NOT like being interrupted, which was the very reason she chose the study as her place to plot and think, no interruptions...usually.

Muttering angry curse words about the cold and annoying creek of the window she pulled the frame toward her and slammed it shut, locking it to keep it from bothering her again.

Flattening her hair again and tucking it behind her ear she reached for a bottle of red wine and a glass that was resting on the bookshelf beside the window. She poured herself a glass and drank it greedily, relishing the bitter-sweet taste.

She lowered the glass from her mouth and licked the remaining drops of dark liquid from her ruby lips. She turned around, ready to get back to work, but instead she dropped the glass with a loud shatter. Fragments of broken glass flew across the wooden floor and the tiniest pieces fell like flakes of glittering dust onto the floor, but LadyDevimon barely noticed, nor cared about the mess at her feet.

"LadyDevimon. A pleasure I'm sure."

LadyDevimon's eyes widened tremendously at the owner's voice, it sounded so familiar...almost like...

"My name is Gem." Seated on LadyDevimon's chair with an intimidating aura was a female figure composed entirely out of shadows, minus the color of her eyes, which were a striking red.

"G-Gem?" LadyDevimon stuttered, still recovering from shock.

"Yes. Do not be alarmed, I am a friend. Piedmon's."

LadyDevimon's eyes narrowed, "You must forgive me, but I consider Piedmon to be less than trustworthy, and I doubt his friends are any better."

"Fair enough." Gem replied, stretching her legs cat-like and rising into a standing position. "But, what do you define as trustworthy? Friends? Doubt it, friends can be the worst of backstabbers. Enemies? Honestly I would rather keep my enemies closer than my friends, just for strategies sake. But the line between friend and enemy is so fine that crossing it at one point is inevitable."

LadyDevimon smirked. "A quote from Kai Mess., Digitania's most famous poet, impressive. It truly says it all doesn't it. So which are you? Friend, or Enemy?"

"I consider myself neither. Merely an alliance that you would be wise to join." Gem replied.

LadyDevimon seated herself on the window seat. "And what reasons do I have to join you, a perfect stranger?"

"For starters, I believe that Light can be better used than lost. Unlike the pathetic vampire who calls himself a Lord and Dark Master. But, if I'm correct, you think the same way I do. You're clever LadyDevimon, I've been watching you, and I think you'd find a better use of your talents _alongside_ me than _behind_ Myotismon any day." Gem stated.

LadyDevimon nodded slowly. "And what do you get out of it?"

Gem cocked her head.

"If I join your group then obviously you'd like something in return. Secrets about the Dark Masters? Weapons? Money? Something."

"Honest LadyDevimon. There isn't a catch. All I ask of you in return is to help me capture the Sages. The Dark Masters are a dying breed due to their own stupidity, while my followers are growing in numbers and in strength. I have a plan LadyDevimon, and although it will take a while to put this plan in complete rotation, it is already in motion. I have more than the Dark Masters could ever hope to have, including a connection with the Leader of the Sages himself."

This caught LadyDevimon's attention instantly. "A connection?"

Gem grinned coyly. "A connection within his mind. Allowing me to envade it any time I please. Giving me the location of the Sages at any moment, and allowing me to inflict inner torment into his very soul." She chuckled fondly at her own abilities.

LadyDevimon was impressed, to say the least, but not convinced. "How do I know you're not bluffing?"

Gem smiled. "I had a feeling you'd be asking the very question, we think alike after all. And I have a solution to the very dilemma. A demonstration..."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT **

Mimi sighed and blew a strand of her honey colored hair out of her face, she wasn't particular to walking nonstop with a guard mumbling to himself.

During their endless march down thousands and thousands of stairs the trio couldn't help but overhear the guard as he talked to himself.

Mimi was standing between Tai and Matt and they were both watching the guard with utter amusement as he cursed everything ranging from Heaven to Hell.

"I think this guy's short a few screws." Tai whispered, pointing his index finger at his temple and moving i in a circular motion.

"A few?" Matt whispered smirking.

Mimi surpressed her bubbly laughter as the guard glanced at them suspiciously.

She smiled, she was glad that she got stuck with these two during their captivity, it made the fear in her chest at being held prisioner again lessen tremendously.

She glanced at Tai who was still grinning at their joke. She'd always thought of him as the brother she never had, always teasing each other and laughing. Tai was weird, he was, like, ALWAYS happy...well...at least until this whole Sage business started, but even with all these responsibilities weighted heavily on their shoulders he always found a way to make everyone smile.

She turned away from Tai and gazed at Matt. Matt was sort of the polar opposite of Tai...okay, maybe not just sort of, more like _completely_ the polar opposite. She, too, thought of Matt like a brother, but she pictured him being the calm mature older brother. He was calm and serious for the majority of the time she'd known him, but every now and then on those rare once-in-a-lifetime moments he would open up to those he's close to. And when he does it always seems to be worth all the moodiness and the cold outter shell. She admitted that she had a huge crush on him when the adventure started, but it was nothing more than that; a crush. One of many that she'd had over the years.

She glanced from them both and realized how much they'd changed since this whole journey began.

_Strange how one series of events can change a person's life forever. I wonder how much I've changed_... she wondered.

The guard suddenly cleared his throat and placed his hand in their path, blocking them off. Getting the hint, the Sages kept put while he took a few steps toward a tall skinny door with a brass knocker.

After a moment's hesitation he lifted his metal-clad hand and knocked on the door.

The loud knocking caused echoes to bounce off the walls and provided the only noise in the otherwise silent corridor.

Not a one spoke until the door slowly creaked open, just enough to expose the darkness within the room.

Tai put a hand to his head as his vision began to spin, it wasn't the worst experience he'd ever encountered but it was enough to tighten his stomach into knots.

"Tai, you okay?" Matt asked, placing a hand on his shoulder, he immediatly noticed the change in him and knew it couldn't be good.

"What's wrong with him?" the guard questioned Mimi.

Mimi glared at him, "Nothing that would concern you." She snapped.

The general was momentarily stunned by the sting of her words. _Damn, I'm turning soft. A teenage brat is insulting me and I actually feel guilty._ He silently cursed his emotions. _Emotions weren't of any use in battle so they're obviously unimportant qualities that we humans are cursed with_. He nodded with satisfaction when the thought finished crossing his mind, but that still left the boy...

The boy suddenly grasped his head with his hands and let out a groan of agony.

The general looked at the three as Matt and Mimi grabbed Tai's shoulders.

"Tai, what's wrong?" Mimi questioned, grasping one of his hands.

"We can't go in there." Tai yelled angrily, not parshal to showing any form of weakness to his enemies.

The General narrowed his eyes. "And why not?"

"_She's_ there. And one of the Dark Masters is with her." He said, pausing once or twice to grit his teeth

The general almost felt sympathy for them but a thought crossed his mind. _This could all be an act. They had time to devise one earlier and they were talking about something before we got here_. His pity instantly dried up and he grabbed the door and threw it open.

"Stop!" Tai yelled. He knew the aura of the room all too well and knew that they were being led into serious danger.

Mimi glanced from the darkness in the room to her friend and quickly ran in front of the general. "He's right, we can't go in there!"

The general narrowed his eyes further, "Alright, I've had enough of this act-"

"It's rude to loiter in doorways General Vince."

The general spun on his heels and stared into the ajar doorway _Wow did it just get colder?_ His angered expression immediatly became one of confusion and his eyebrows furrowed, he'd never heard that voice before.

"In case you didn't get the hint, that means come in." another voice added.

He glanced at the three and noticed how all three of them tensed. He shook off the unfamiliar feelings of concern, grabbed the three of them by their arms and stepped inside.

The boy without powers cried out, jerked his arm free and grabbed his unnaturally spikey hair and shut his eyes tightly.

"If...if we stay here...we'll die." Tai murmered, glaring intently at the general.

The general was starting to doubt his decision of coming in here and halted in the center of the room. _What the hell is going on?_

"General Vince."

The general felt a wave of relief wash over him, that was the voice that hired him to keep these brats in check, maybe he was planning on explaining what was going on.

"Sir." he replied, he saluted the three shadowed figures.

The Sages were glaring at the three figures, one they didn't recognize since he wore a hooded black coat that shielded his hair and eyes from view, but the other two were instantly recognized.

None of them were completely visable in the darkness, the light shining from the door barely touched the tips of their shoes, but the centered one and the tallest figure couldn't be mistaken for anyone else; Gem and LadyDevimon.

"About time you showed up you oaf." the unidentified boy barked.

The Guard's icy blue eyes darkened slightly but he remained silent.

"That was Trigger's voice," Matt whispered to the two beside him.

Mimi turned to him, "Oh my goddess, you're right. I didn't _really_ think Trigger was behind this, I just wanted to blame someone." She looked a little guilty as she admitted this, but the emotion quickly dried up as their "aquantience" addressed the man before them.

"General Vince, this is my boss, Mistress Gem." Trigger stated, still keeping to the shadows, obviously he didn't want his identity revealed yet.

The general nodded his head in her direction.

Gem's eyes glowed with amusement as she stepped away from the darkness, but the darkness still clung to her like a full body suit. "A pleasure I'm sure." She offered her hand to the General before looking over her shoulder, "And this is my guest LadyDevimon."

LadyDevimon smirked as her eyes landed on the three Sages, she had to use every ounce of self-control she was granted to keep from killing them on the spot.

"Gentlemen, if you will take your leave. LadyDevimon and I have some things we would like to discuss with the Sages." Gem stated, turning to Trigger and the general. Trigger nodded without question and exited through a different door on the other side of the room, but the general hesitated. He glanced from the three teenagers to the two monsters, his conscience was telling him not to the leave the three there, especially without their powers but his sense of duty was telling him to leave with haste. Duty vs. Heart.

"General." Gem said more forceful this time, her eyes narrowing threateningly.

Snapping back to reality he nodded slowly and regretfully left.

"I knew that guy was a coward." Matt murmered when he was gone.

With the two gone Gem's eyes flared to their usual glowing brillance. She smirked as she walked up to the Sages. "Welcome to my second base Sages." The three glared at her viciously. She locked her eyes with each of them in turn before allowing her black magic to flow around her fists.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"HELLO!"

"I don't think anyone's home Joe," Ebony stated, peering through a dusty window.

The house of their guide was nothing special; a white house with a wood roof, a porch with a cover, dusty windows and a garden long since dead, and a broken mailbox that was leaning pathetically to one side.

"He's there," Meg stated angrily. She grabbed the doorknob and turned it easily, "See, it's unlocked," then she tried to push it open and it caught on something, "but there's something blocking it. I don't know anyone who would barricade themselves _out_ of their home."

Joe nodded in agreement. He pounded on the door again. "Hey! Come on open up! We know you're there!"

Meg snapped her head towards the window where she saw movement. "Joe, how do we even know that this guy hasn't been tainted by the Valley?"

"We don't, we're chancing it." Joe replied.

"I don't take unnecessary risks." Ebony stated, she gribbed a knife in her purple cloak and withdrew it from the folds, she clenched her other fist, ready to pounce on the guy.

"Hang on Eb, let's talk to the guy first." Joe said, placing his hands over her's and lowering them to her sides.

Ebony rolled her eyes but didn't resist. Joe gave her a small smile and she crossed her arms over her chest stubbornly, still keeping the knife hidden behind her arm.

Meg growled in frustration. "Honestly, I had to get stuck with the two of you! I swear you two flirt every five minutes." she rolled her eyes irratibly and slammed her fist against the wall.

Surprising everyone, herself included, the door swung open and a guy a few years older than them stood in the doorway. "Can I help you?" he demanded, his eyes narrowed.

Joe cleared his throat. "Yea, uh...you see-"

"We need an escort through the Valley." Meg stated.

The young man's eyes flashed angrily. "Get yourself someone else, I don't plan on leading any more people to their deaths." he grabbed the door and slammed it against the frame.

Joe narrowed his eyes and turned to Meg, "Well that was alot of help!"

"What!" she demanded, "Not my fault the guy's a jerk!"

"Maybe you could've said it without being so straightforward!" Joe stated.

"There's no sense in beating around the bush Joe, you won't get anything said if you do it that way." Meg shot back.

Joe slapped a hand on his forehead. "Well, _because_ you didn't beat around the bush he won't help us."

"And that's _my_ fault!" Meg yelled, her fury rising. "What were you planning on saying! 'Hello sir how has your day been going? Now that you mention it, do you know anything about the Valley? Why? Oh no reason, just curious. But speaking of curiousity would you mind escorting us through there?' Any way you said it he would've had the same reaction."

Ebony rolled her eyes and stepped up to the door. With a mighty kick the door broke off its hinges and clattered on the floor.

The deafening clammor stopped Meg's and Joe's argument without hesitation "Eb! You can't do that! This is breaking and entering!".

Ebony shrugged and stepped into the young man's sorry-excuse for a living room.

His head poked around the corner and his eyes widened slightly before glaring at the intruders.

"What the hell did you do to my door!" he yelled angrily. "You're going to pay for the damage, I'm broke enough!"

Ebony narrowed her eyes and waltzed up to the guy, he was at least a foot taller than she was but size wasn't an issue in the matter. She withdrew her knife and pointed it at the guy's chest.

"Listen you, we need your help and if you refuse I'll kill you, simple as that."

"No you wouldn't." he smirked.

"Try me." Ebony snarled, "I'm a trained assassin and I've killed many others before you."

He rolled his eyes, "Yea, suuuure."

Meg narrowed her eyes and stepped beside Ebony, "Plus, she's got the powers of darkness on her side." Meg willed her eyes to begin glowing and smirked at the result.

"Wha-What do you want?!" he said fearfully, glancing from one female to the other.

"A favor." Joe piped in. "We need you to guide us through the Valley. We don't have any money, but we're willing to promise a favor for you in the future."

"What gave you the idea that I'm the one to ask?" he asked.

"Well, let's see, you live near the Valley, you told us you wouldn't lead any _more_ people to their deaths, meaning you've done so already, and all the townspeople say you're the guy we needed to talk to." Meg explained.

His eyes narrowed. "I haven't been in the Valley in years, not since my dad died, I don't know how much it's changed since then. And we'd all be in constant danger, you kids have no idea the peril within those mists."

"Trust me, we've been in more hazardous situations than anyone on Digitania. And this is a life or death situation." Ebony stated.

"You're right, and we're walking straight into the deah part of it if I help you."

"Listen-"

"Our friends were kidnapped and taken there! We need to help them!" Meg explained, she was starting to get exasperated with this guy.

"So a rescue mission. Seen plenty of those to know that neither party comes out alive. Your friends are probably dead by now."

Ebony's eyes darkened and she clenched her fist in rage, she thrust her fist toward his face and slammed it into the wall next to his head. "You don't get it! They're NOT dead, if they were we would know."

Meg and Joe turned to one another and nodded. "We're Sages," they said in unsion.

"Sages huh? That's a new one."

At this comment even Joe's eyes began to flicker with their aqua aura. "Come on guys, this guy is obviously too afraid to help us. If the world comes to an end he'll know who's to blame."

With that final word said the three stormed out of the house.

"What're we going to do now?" Meg sighed, collapsing on the ground in front of his house.

"As much as I don't want to say it, I guess we'll have to go in there alone." Joe said, he turned to the Valley and his eyes lost their focus.

Ebony followed his gaze and felt the color drain from her face. The mist almost looked like two white hands reaching toward them, trying to drag them in and never let them go.

"I agree." Meg nodded, tearing her gaze away from the eerie sight.

"Let's get going then." Ebony stated, she offered her hand to Meg and they began walking toward the forbidden grounds.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTT** (A/N: Okay, since I got a review about graphic stuff, this is a warning that there is pain and torture in this next section!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!)

"MATT!!"

Tai shook off the exploding stars that last punch caused to dart into his eyes. He placed his palm on his jaw and winced before turning to where Gem, Mimi, and Matt were still standing.

"You know...this isn't nearly as much fun as it was when you had your powers." Gem smirked, hoisting Matt off the ground by the neck while he was struggled for the air his lunges were in desperate need of.

"Let (gasp) go!" he demanded.

"Awww...has Matty already had enough?" she taunted as she tightened her hold.

Matt gasped again and tried to pry her fingers from his neck but they wouldn't budge! He felt his limbs getting heavier and heavier until it was an exhausting effort to clutch her arm. A blackness was creeping into his vision and slowly his grasp began to weaken.

Gem was watching his desperate fight for life with unimaginable joy, his grip had loosened entirely by now and his limbs dropped uselessly to his sides and his head rolled back.

"BAM!!"

Gem released her death-grip without hesitation and her hands flew to her nose. She let a few curse words escape her lips as she removed her hand, blood was dripping through her fingers. She raised her eyes and saw Mimi standing a few feet away, her eyes dark and her fists clenched.

"Are you alright Matt?" She asked, never straying her gaze from Gem.

He didn't reply, but his gasps told her that at least he wasn't dead.

Gem chuckled, "Wow, looks like the princess has some fight in her after all." Mimi narrowed her eyes but didn't have a chance to make a comeback. Gem smirked and ran the short distance between herself and the earth Sage. Using the momentum to her advantage she slammed her fist into her stomache sending Mimi flying backwards.

She gasped when she made contact with the concrete floor, the uneven tile cutting into her shoulders and back. She skidded to a halt and lifted her head off the ground, but Gem wasn't where she had been standing!

"Meems! Behind you!"

Mimi wasted no time after the warning and rolled onto her feet just as Gem sent an orb of black energy where Mimi had been laying.

Gem scowled and lifted her gaze. Tai was standing beside her and Gem knew it was time to see what LadyDevimon could do against these two Sages.

"LadyDevimon, I promised you a demonstration of my power, but a demonstration of your own would be a real treat."

LadyDevimon grinned and stepped forward. "Sounds fair." She looked at the Sages and smirked. "I don't plan on holding back anymore Sages. I'm not held on Myotismon's strings any longer."

Tai chanced a glance at Mimi but her expression told him that she understood exactly what that meant; Gem's numbers were growing.

"DARKNESS WAVE!!"

Mimi barely had time to register what was happening before Tai grasped her wrist and dove to the ground. Thousands of bats soared above their heads, some managing to scratch at their faces before flying out of reach.

She laughed darkly before veering her arm back. Her long red nails seemed to grow longer as she thrust them towards the Sages "VILE WING!!"

The Sages were still crouched on the ground due to the bombardment of bats, the flapping of wings was so intense that LadyDevimon's screech couldn't reach their ears.

Tai yelped as he felt her razor-like nails slice through the skin on his back. Mimi clutched his hand, reminding him that they were still in grave danger.

"Remember my plan LadyDevimon." Gem stated, appearing beside her.

"Relax Gem, and have some fun once in a while. How often do we get to pummel the Sages while they have no fight in them." LadyDevimon laughed.

She held up her left arm and her fingers melded together into a javelin-like spear.

The bats were finally gone and Mimi was able to look up and gasp, but it was too late to save themselves against one of LadyDevimon's most deadly attacks.

"BLACK WING!!"

Tai's breath got caught in his throat. "Meems?" he whispered. The look of pain sketched on her face shocked him; her eyes were wide and slightly buldged, her mouth was agape and she had completely frozen.

He looked up and saw LadyDevimon smirking above him, her arm, now a long sharp spike, was piercing through Mimi's back.

Mimi let out a small gasping sound before collapsing, unconscious.

LadyDevimon screeched with insane laughter before pulling her arm out with a sickening sucking sound. Tai cringed at the sound, he knew that sound was going to follow him to his grave.

"Impressive," Gem grinned.

LadyDevimon bowed gracefully to her one-person audience. "Thank you Gem." She lifted her head and revealed the fallen angel's trademark smirk.

Gem shared the smirk and Tai wearily wondered what they had in store for him. Matt was strangled and Mimi now had a gushing wound through her back, he doubted they were planning on letting him walk away with only a few scratches.

**TTTTTTTTTTTT** (!!END WARNING!!)

"Ooookay, so this place is a little bigger than I expected."

"Ya think," Meg spat sarcastically. She shot a dirty look at Joe, "I knew we should've just made that jerk come with us with or without his approval. But it's alright, just ignore me. It's not like I _told you_ no one would help us back there and that we were wasting our time." She placed her hands on her hips and scowled.

Joe glanced at her angrily but chose not to say anything. "Well...what now?"

Ebony tucked a strand of her black hair behind her ear. "With a size this massive it could take weeks to cover the entire area, and we're bound to run into unpleasentries while we're in there. We'll need more food and other supplies to keep us going and it'll be ten times harder to walk and fight with extra luggage. And if what Sora said about the fog is true, we'll have to keep backtracking to keep from inhaling too much poison. Bottom line: This is impossible."

The trio were standing on the ledge that overlooked the Valley, the same one (they guessed) that Sora and Tai had been standing on when they were younger.

Their hopes were diminished at the sight of the basin stretching toward the horizon. The Valley was narrow and had canyon walls on either side, but the length couldn't be determined because it was so long. The ground was hidden beneath a silver blanket of vapor; the fog. And just as Sora descibed, there wasn't a bird, insect, or any other trace of life other than themselves. It was eerily quiet.

"Maybe we should wait until tomorrow before we go in." Ebony suggested.

"We've wasted enough time already, if we wait too much longer..."

"I have to agree with Meg, Eb." Joe stated. "But I will admit that I'm not happy about going in there now, it'll be dark soon."

Ebony turned back to the horizon and saw that the sun was slowly dipping toward the earth, it's rays gaining intensity as it finished it's coarse for the day.

She didn't know what to do. Her instincts were telling her to wait; wait for sunlight, wait for an idea, wait for help..., but her heart was telling her that most of her new friends, her only friends, were in danger.

Frustrated with this sudden internal argument she sank to the ground and rested her back on the crunching yellowish grass, staring at the sky. The conflict between the earth and sky mirrored the conflict within her very being; the sky was georgous, the prettiest sunset she'd ever seen, perhaps this represented the beuatuful friendship she formed with the Sages. But looming just below the beauty was the mysterious and horror-striking Vile Valley, the very place that had been terrorizing these people with it's haunting silence and ghostly pressence, similar to her past which followed her silently and ducked behind objects whenever she looked back. After a long, awkward silence she sighed and broke it, "I don't know what to do."

Joe looked away from the Valley and turned to her. He could see the confusion streaking through her by the glazed look in her eyes. Her confidence and take-action nature had momentarily left her, and the teenager part of her that was often pushed aside began shining through her emotional barrier.

"Eb?" Meg asked, she kneeled on the ground beside the Xidigan heiress.

"How do you do it Meg?"

Meg was taken back by the question, "How do I do what?"

"How do you decide what to do. This morning and all day you've known that you wanted to help them no matter what the consequence. How can you ignore the consequences?" Ebony had raised her head to look into Meg's eyes for the truth.

Meg bit her lower lip nervously and averted her eyes, "I don't know. I guess...I don't always think about the consequences."

"How?" Ebony asked.

"I...I think about the people instead, and...I don't know Eb, I just..." She took a deep breath and huffed out impatiently. "I don't know how to explain it. Just thinking about Tai and Mimi and all the others...I've never had any friends before and I don't want to lose them."

"You've never had friends before?" Joe asked, his voice was much softer than it had been earlier.

Meg shook her head solemly and Ebony placed a hand on her shoulder, "I guess that makes two of us."

Meg looked at her with a slightly shocked expression.

Joe seated himself on Ebony's vacant side, "I never thought about what it would be like without them. I've known most of them all my life. It must be lonely...not having someone."

"You have no idea." Meg shook her head as if to clear her mind of her haunted past.

"I still don't understand," Ebony stated, "You know the risks of going and yet you're willing to sacrifice your life when you might be the only chance they've got. It goes against everything I've been taught."

"I can't really explain it Eb, but...maybe one day you'll understand." she smiled as she looked over Ebony's shoulder to Joe.

Their first real conversation was short lived when a rustle from the nearby brush sent them to their feet.

Joe and Meg raised their arms and charged their power while Ebony grasped a few of her daggers and held them at ready.

"Whoa, would you mind pointing those somewhere else."

Ebony narrowed her eyes and tightened her grip. "What do _you_ want?"

A young man stepped out of the brush, and the Sages got their first real look at the guy who had slammed the door in their faces. His hair had the same style as Matt's, only slightly messier from the run to their location, the color was black and had purple streaks throughout the spikes. His skin was pale and he was wearing a black T-shirt and faded black jeans with holes in the knees. In his hand he held a lanturn which illuminated his dark eyes.

"I-I want to help," he said, rolling his eyes. Obviously it took his conscience a lot of time to convince this guy that helping them was the right thing to do.

"Why?" Joe asked, lowering his hands but keeping them clenched.

"Because...I know you're going in there whether I am or not. If you three want to get yourselves killed that's your problem, but at least I won't be to blame."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Ebony demanded.

"You don't." he shrugged.

Meg lowered her arms and crossed them over her chest, "So, who are you?"

He shrugged again before replying, "My name's Kuro, and that's all you need to know.'

Joe nodded, "I'm Joe, that's Ebony and Meg."

Kuro nodded and set the lanturn on the ground. "So are you planning on making camp here?"

"No, we're leaving tonight." Ebony stated.

Kuro's eyes widened for a split second before reverting back, "Whoa, you three really _do_ have a death wish."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"Tar, could you quit pacing, you're starting to make me dizzy."

"I can't help it Tk!" Tar raged. She slammed her fists against the bars of the cell in frustration and let the clanging echo off the walls. "Why would they move us to a different cell. There was nothing wrong with the last room, as far as we could tell. So why would they suddenly move us?"

"My best guess is that they needed the room for something else." Izzy suggested.

"Like what?" Tk questioned.

"I don't have the faintest idea. We haven't been given enough information to know the purpose of this place. It could be a base for Trigger and his gang, a Dark Master could live here, they could store rare artifacts and captives here, or-"

"They could be dissecting a rare alien species downstairs." Tar rolled her eyes. "Face it you guys. We're running out of ideas. Who knows..." she slumped down to the floor and looked at them discouragingly, "Maybe the Dark Masters have finally beaten us..."

"Don't you dare say that Tar!'

Tar looked up in shock at the bold words.

"We're never in a position that's hopeless. Things might seem bad right now, but we'll get through it!"

"Tk..."

"He's right Tar. What would the others say if they saw you breaking down like this."

Tar averted her eyes away from her friends shamefully before her breath got caught in her throat. "I think they'd be screaming."

Tk and Izzy looked at her with a "what?" look on their faces before seeing what made their stomaches clench.

"Matt!!"

"Mimi!!"

The trio jumped to their feet and raced to the bars, clenching them in the palms as horror streaked across their faces.

"What did you do to them LadyDevimon!" Tar screeched.

The corner of LadyDevimon's mouth quirked in an amused half-smile. She was holding Mimi by her hair and clutching Matt by his wrists, both were unconscious but showed the scars of battle. "Let's just say that they got what was coming to them."

LadyDevimon held up her hand and the three flew into the opposite wall. Upon hearing the pleasurable "Thud" and the simultanious grunts as they hit the ground she pulled out a master key from the confines of her outfit and threw the other two inside the cell.

She slammed the cell door with a thundering "Bang" and catwalked out of the room, glancing over her shoulder to throw a sinister smile at the huddled teens.

The conscious three wasted no time in racing to their friends' aid.

Tk knelt beside his brother and noticed that the only serious injury was the brusing around his neck_. She tried to choke him_!

Izzy reached Mimi the same time Tk reached Matt but her injuries were far more severe.

"Oh my goddess," Tar breathed as she looked at Mimi's paling face. "Izzy, how can we help her!"

Izzy ceased chewing on his lower lip and glanced around frantically. "I don't know."

"You don't know!?! Izzy!! You know everything!!"

"Not medical science!" Izzy shot back angrily. "I'm a computer geek, not a doctor!"

Tar groaned in frustration, "You can't tell me that you know _nothing_ about a situation like this!"

"Yea, for one it sucks to have someone critizing your intelect while you're trying to think!"

Tar narrowed her eyes at this comment but kept her mouth shut.

Izzy took a few calming breaths and racked his brain for something he may have read or something that Joe may have told him.

"We don't want this wound to get infected. I don't have any idea how to tell if any major organs have been punctured, but we should get it cleaned and bandaged."

Tar nodded, "But what do we have to clean it with Einstein?"

"Where's Joe when you need him." Tk murmered. "Wait! Matt! His powers are ice! If we could figure out how to get these bands off-"

"Tk you're brillant!" Tar exclaimed.

He blushed lightly at this compliment, but that still left his idea's main dilema. "How do we get the bands off?"

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

Sora slid her hands over the dull grey bricks for the millionth time, desperate to find something she must have missed the last nine hundred and ninty nine thousand nine hundred and ninty nine times. She sighed in defeat, aggrivated that she couldn't find a way out.

She glanced over her shoulder and her eyes landed on Kari's sleeping figure. She smiled with a motherly affection and seated herself beside the younger girl. Her face was calm and peaceful. Sora didn't have the heart to wake her from her dreams and welcome her back into their nightmare. She lightly brushed away some stray strands of her light brown hair from her forehead. Sora never had any siblings, but since she'd known Tai and Tar almost her entire life Kari became close to her almost instantly.

She gazed around the small room again, but the scenery hadn't changed any since she awoke in this place.

The whole ordeal only left fuzzy imprints in her mind. She was aroused from sleep by a piercing scream before her limbs were apprehended. She hadn't even gotten a glimpse of her captors before being blindfolded and dragged this way and that. A few times she overhead unfamiliar voices cursing and she knew her friends were giving these men as much hell as they could in their current states. Everything afterward was completely hazy, almost like she was having an out-of-body experience in which her legs continued to press forward without her brain's knowledge or consent. At one point she must've fallen asleep because the next moment she was awakening in this grey room with Kari.

The room was like a cell without bars. Grey stone walls and floor, no windows, and an iron door caked with rust from the years it hadn't been in use. Sora tried every escape plan that came into her head, from a variety of kicks and punches to her magic, but was obviously unsuccessful. It wasn't long until she realized what was causing the block in her magic and she was hoping that Izzy was uncovering a way out of them as she sat there uselessly.

She scowled. She _hated_ being trapped in here.

She rolled her eyes and leaned against one of the walls. _I hope our mystery abductor shows up soon, at least it'll give me something to think about._

!!BANG!!

Sora jumped with a start as the bolt keeping her trapped unhinged and the door creaked open with an annoyed groan. The image behind the door immediatly made her regret her choice of words ten seconds ago.

LadyDevimon was standing in the doorway with an irritated air around her. Sora lept to her feet and stood in front of Kari, daring to glare directly into the fallen angel's eyes.

LadyDevimon studied the redhead for a moment before a cruel smile crept up one side of her mouth. "I wouldn't be so bold, giving the position that you're in."

Sora didn't back down, even as LadyDevimon struted inside and stood in front of her she remained firmly glued to her chosen spot between the dark angel and Kari.

"Hmmm...You know Gem, as your official partner, I would like to suggest that you take this one into consideration. She seems like she'd be alot of fun to break."

"Trust me LadyDevimon, there's no one I plan to make suffer more than her."

Sora's mind was beginning to race with the information she had just recieved, whether it was unintentional or not Sora had just learned that Gem and LadyDevimon were partners, and this chunk of knowledge would definatly come in handy in later days. But the next moment all thoughts of Gem had completely vanished from her mind.

"Tai?"

Gem had appeared in the doorway, casually leaning against the metal with Tai standing beside her. Upon hearing his name he turned to Sora and his eyes lit up.

She was so relieved to see him that she momentarily forgot about LadyDevimon. She took a few steps toward him but was stopped by a cold hand clasped around her arm.

"Let me go." she yelled, trying to pry LadyDevimon's icy fingers away from her flesh. Her eyes were blazing as she yanked her arm free.

Gem watched the display with interest.

"Come LadyDevimon, we have things to discuss."

The fallen angel looked reluctant to move, she turned her attention from Sora, to Tai, back to Sora, then to Kari. Her muscles ached for a battle, a challenge.

"LadyDevimon." Gem said impatiently.

She sighed, it seemed that her bloodlust would have to wait to be satisfied. With a last menacing glare to the occupants of the cell she stormed out, slamming the door with a loud !!BANG!! behind her.

Sora waited until she heard the bolt slide back into place with a loud "click" before racing to Tai and throwing her arms around him.

"Tai! I was so worried about all of you. Are you hurt? Have you seen any of the others? Are they okay? Where are we? What is Gem-"

"Sora." he laughed.

She blushed bashfully and shyly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Sorry." It was then that they both realized the compromising position, blushing furiously they released one another and tried to regain their composure.

So um...what was your first question?" Tai asked awkwardly.

"Umm...have you seen any of the others?" Sora repeated nervously.

"Mimi and Matt." he stated, smiling slightly.

Sora sighed, relieved. "Good. And are they okay?"

Tai's smile vanished and his stomach began churning.

Sora noticed this and her eyes widened. "They're hurt arn't they? By LadyDevimon and Gem?" Her eyes narrowed and she clenched her fists. "I know I've said it before but I'm _going_ to kill them."

Tai smiled, "Sor, when you read my mind like that it kind of freaks me out."

Sora laughed, "Tai, there's nothing in your head _to_ read."

Tai looked offended for a moment before noticing Kari. Sora followed his gaze and smiled reassuringly, "She's just sleeping, and as far as I can tell she doesn't have any injuries."

"Well that's a relief." Tai sighed. "So have you heard from anyone?"

Sora shook her head, "You're the first I've seen since we got here, besides Kari, that is."

"Meg, Joe, and Ebony managed to escape, but I haven't seen Tar, Tk, or Izzy since Hornet showed us to our rooms." Tai added, mentally counting off everyone in his head to see if they were missing anyone.

"I'm sure they're fine." Sora stated, "There's no point in killing only a few of us, we're strongest when we're together."

Tai nodded in agreement and there was a short, comfortable silence between them. They were both equally lost in their thoughts. They silently mused about similar topics; How were they going to get out of here?, Are the others okay?, Does he/she like me as much as I like him/her?

They caught themselves thinking this and awkwardly turned to one another, before they quickly looked away. The stressed silence was ended abrubtly when neither could stand it anymore.

"Tai/Sora."

They laughed when they realized they said each other's name at the same time.

"Okay, so what were you going to say?" Sora asked.

"Oh it's nothing important." he lied. "What were _you_ going to say?"

"Umm...well...I..." She sighed, all the courage she mustered up a few minutes ago was completely gone, "Are LadyDevimon and Gem the only two behind this?"

Tai was afraid this question was going to turn up. "...There was someone else..."

Sora looked at him sternly when she noticed his hesitant choice of words. The only time Tai ever hesitated was when he had bad news, _really_ bad news, news that _he_ knew _she_ wouldn't particularily like.

He knew he had practically dug his own grave by bringing up this tender subject. After all, the backstabbing traitor was what caused them to fight the last evening before dinner. He was slowly beginning to regret his decision to tell her and was trying to figure out who would be the best person to break the news to her, but Sora wasn't about to cut him a break.

Sora stubbornly crossed her arms over her chest and prepared herself for the blow she knew was coming.

"Tai?"

Tai cringed at the impatient tone. "Well...uhh..."

Sora narrowed her eyes, "Tai Kamiya, if you're planning to back out of this then I _definatly_ want to know who is was."

_Okay, just break it to her gently..._. "Sora...It...It was Trigger..." he said slowly. _That was brillant Kamiya. _He rolled his eyes and had to resist the urge to slap his forehead.

Sora was silent for a moment, keeping her eyes locked with his in an effort to get him to break down and admit that he was lying. Minutes slowly past and her patience grew thin. Finally, all that anger she held in her chest for those short few moments burst and she found herself yelling at her best friend. "Tai what do you have against him!!"

"I don't have-"

"You should know by now that you can't lie to me Tai." Sora snapped.

Tai was slightly shocked at the anger vibrating through her voice, and it infuriated him that she was mad at him _again_ because he brought up Trigger. But he focused all his will and gritted his teeth, determined to keep his temper under control. "Why are you defending him? It's obvious the guy's no good!"

"I'm _not_ defending him!" She stated angrily.

"Sure looks like it to me!" Tai responded.

Sora glared daggers at him and clenched her fists. "Why do you have to feel threatened by anyone that stands up to you!"

"What! Sora I don't care about that!!"

"Yes you do Tai. As much as you hate to admit it you do."

Tai narrowed his eyes dangerously, "When did this discussion turn to me! I'm only telling you what I saw!"

"How do I know what you saw was real! It could all be an illusion set up by Gem!"

"If it was it wouldn't affect me!"

There was a short silence between the duo before Tai spoke again.

"Sora, I'm not accusing him for no reason. Mimi and Matt agree with me."

Sora glared at him. "Oh, and I suppose that settles it doesn't it! Tai, in case you forgot, Matt trusts people probably just as often as you think before acting, and Mimi can't stand him after that guy hit on her!"

"So just because they don't like him they're all going to agree that he's working with Gem! And arn't _you_ forgetting that Matt and I don't exactly agree often."

"I don't get it Tai! You're willing to let anyone join our group, including assassians, and yet you can't even attempt to deal with Trigger!"

"I delt with him fine until I saw him with LadyDevimon and Gem! Standing besides our enimies doesn't leave the impression that he's still on our side!"

"How do you know you're not just jumping to conclusions!?!"

"Sora! The evidence is completly against him! The guys that took us knew where we were, they knew how to navigate in the catacombs, and they knew about my powers! These things can't just be coincidences!"

"I don't care about any of that Tai! I don't care about the evidence! Sure it sounds logical, but you can't rely on your mind to do everything! You have to listen to your heart too! And mine's telling me that Trigger's innocent!" She turned her back to him and crossed her arms.

Tai tried to ignore the sting these words caused and gazed at her intently.

"I-I just don't understand why someone..." She shook her head in frustration, "Never mind."

Tai lowered his gaze, he suddenly felt extreamly guilty about yelling at her. "Sora...I don't want this to completely ruin our friendship. Look how it's messed it up so far, I can't remember us _ever_ fighting like this before...," he stood behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Sora...please...what arn't you telling me?"

Sora's shoulders began to shake under his palm. "I don't understand why someone that might..." She stopped and wiped a few stray tears from her eyes. "It's stupid, I shouldn't-"

"Sora, if it's bothering you that much it can't be _that_ dumb."

She shook her head, "Trigger, I just...he actually seems to...you know...like me..."

Tai felt something in his chest harden and collapse into his stomache. Sora let several tears escape her eyes, "I...don't understand why a guy that might like me has to be the prime suspect."

Tai swallowed the lump in his throat and took a few steps away from her. Trying to mask the hurt in his voice he dared to ask the question that was burned into his mind, "Do...do you like him too?"

There was a long moment of silence between the two, and the only sound that showed that there was life within its walls was the soft sound of Kari's breathing.

Sora turned to him and averted her eyes, "Tai, you're so STUPID!"

Tai expected a lot of answers but that wasn't one of them.

She stubbornly wiped away a few stray tears with the back of her hand. "Of course I don't."

"Then why-"

Sora let out a small laugh, "Isn't it obvious?" Tai's blank expression told her all she needed to know, "I was flirting with him to make you...jealous."

"Jealous? Why-" He stopped as all the pieces suddenly came together. "This doesn't have anything to do with Meg does it?" Sora chose to remain quiet."Are _you_ jealous of her?"

Sora's eyes narrowed. "Of course not!" Tai looked at her skeptically. _Damnit. _"Okay so I might be...a little."

"And she's jealous of you. Now it all makes sense." He smiled before looking back to his best friend. "I get it, but..._why_ are you jealous of her?"

Sora sighed and leaned against the wall before sliding into a sitting position, "I don't know. I guess it's because you're always with her and-"

"Are you afraid that I'll replace you?" he interrupted, seating himself beside her. Sora didn't reply but words weren't needed. He smiled slightly and cupped her face. "Sor...no one could _ever_ replace you."

Sora felt butterflies begin to flutter in her stomache as she placed her hands over his.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, Kari had a huge grin on her face. She wasn't eavesdropping! Of course not! This was _Kari_! She didn't do things like that! It was extreamly hard to sleep with those two yelling! Besides, it's not like they _said_ they wanted this to be a private conversation.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"So, who wants to go first?" Kuro surveyed the looks on the Sages' faces, trying to find some sort of reconsideration on one of their faces, but if they were nervous they certainly hid it well. All three of them had determination written all over their faces. He hadn't given them enough credit, these kids had more strength than he thought.

Ebony glanced at her friends. "I'll go." She pocketed her weapons and gripped the rope tightly. This wasn't the first time she'd climbed a mountain, but the rocks shifted so easily beneath her feet that she was forced to use extreme caution. She gritted her teeth as she slowly eased herself downward.

"Be careful Eb." Joe whispered. The three had crowded around the edge to make sure she didn't fall or lose her hold.

Ebony paused her descent and looked up at her expecting friends, "Okay! Kuro you next!" Kuro knew this arrangement had been planned. It was clever, but he felt it was completely unnecessary. Being the second out of four to desend the Sages knew he couldn't abandon them by being first or last. Also, the girl, Ebony, wouldn't hesitate to kick his ass again if she had to, giving him no escape routes...not that he planned on using any.

Blocking out their suspicious glares, he gripped the rope tightly and kicked off the rock, landing on the flats of his feet with ease but causing a small amount of rocks to fall to the gloom below.

"Watch it!" Ebony bellowed as she shook the dirt from her hair.

He smirked before looking up to the edge, Joe and Meg were peering cautiously over the edge in case anything went amiss. "Who's next?!"

Joe and Meg exchanged glances and Joe chuckled dryly, "Ladies first?"

Meg rolled her eyes. "So you decide to be a gentlemen _now_, in the midst of an upcoming battle!" She shook her head but proceeded downward with relative ease, slipping only once or twice.

Ebony jumped from what remained of the cliff and landed gracefully on her feet. She gave a low whistle as her trained eyes uncovered numerous ambush points and several different paths that were hidden by shadows and fog.

"Unnerving, isn't it."

Ebony didn't falter at the sound of the voice. "Very. And you guided people through here for a living."

"Not much else to do for people like me."

"Which brings me to ask you this, how is it, a teenager only a few years older than myself, hasn't been taken into the shadows like all the people you provided tours for over the years?" Meg demanded, landing on the marshy land beside them.

Kuro turned to her with a small smile on his face, "The darkness isn't interested in people like me."

"What do y-"

"AHH!!!"

The three barely had time to look up before they were flattened by Joe, who clumsily lost his footing and fell.

"Sorry." he groaned.

"Get off Joe!" Meg screeched. Her eyes began glowing and Joe was thrown off the small pile by a powerful gust of black magic.

_"Get-"_

_"Get off Joe"_

_"-off Joe"_

_"-Joe! Get-"_

_(those are echos if you didn't figure that out)_

Kuro slapped his hand over her mouth. "Sshhh!! Do you want every shadow to know we're here!"

"Too late." Ebony murmered.

Kuro glanced around them and saw at least fifty pairs of eyes watching their every move. Meg struggled under his hand before ripping it off her mouth. She glared back at the eyes, her aura forming around her.

The creatures behind the darkness had eyes of every color; red like blood, yellow, black, purple, dark blue, and white. Each watched the strangers curiously for a moment...two had the same magical signature they themselves had, one didn't have any magical properties but looked like a savage wolf nonetheless, and the last one had powerful magic...but they had never sensed it before.

A silent debate passed through the shadows as they picked their first target. With a quick agreement several launched themselves at Joe while twice the amount lunged for Ebony.

Ebony had seen the signs and had prepared herself. Grasping a dagger in each hand she spun around just as two of the shadows were upon her, slicing one in half and decapitating the other in a swift windmill motion.

Joe ducked as the first three soared towards him, claws and fangs barred. He glanced around and cursed, he couldn't see any body of water through all this fog! Ducking and dodging he backed into Ebony and the two faced an army of black creatures with huge claws and long, sharp teeth dripping with saliva.

"There's too many of them." Ebony stated through gritted teeth, slashing through another unfortunate shadow being. "Joe! Figure out a way to get us out of here alive! I'll hold them off!"

Joe nodded, the gears in his head turning in overdrive. He gazed all around them for something to use, something that would help them escape! He squinted his eyes through the haze, trying to locate something useful. "I can't see anything!"

Ebony flipped her knife in her hand before plundging it into a shadow's chest with ferocity. "Well what are we supposed to do!"

_TTT_

Meanwhile Meg and Kuro had been backed into a wall, the shadows hadn't attacked them though. They seemed fascinated by the duo for reasons unkown.

"What are they doing?"

"Meg, what element do you have control over?" Kuro sighed at her quizzical stare, "The shadows can sense the type of magic within a person, your friends' magic is a type they're not familiar with but your's is."

"My element is Darkness."

Kuro nodded slowly, "That explains why they haven't attacked us. They're confused. Technically we have the same magical composition as the shadows, they don't know if we're friend or foe."

"So that's why you've survived all these years." Meg noted. "But if you're of Darkness...are you evil?"

Kuro glanced at her with a small smirk. "That's an interesting question. Are you?"

Meg didn't respond and that was all Kuro needed. "You've had a dark past too, huh."

"You could call it that." Meg stated grimly.

Kuro nodded understandingly, he raised his hand to eye level and stared long and hard at the palm of his hand. "Some pasts are best left forgotten." His nails suddenly grew twice as long as they had been and twice as sharp. Large bat wings errupted from his back and his eyes blackened. He curled his fingers before digging his nails into the soft skulls of the shadows, and in one swipe they were all down.

Meg stared at him, eyes wide. "Who...What _are_ you?"

Kuro didn't reply but began racing through the crowds of shadows, slashing through the creatures with relative ease.

Meg shook off her awed confusion, the time to ask questions would have to come later. Her red aura formed around her body and she shot a black wave of energy at another crowd of shadows, killing them all instantly in a swirl of black mist.

_TTT_

"Joe!" Ebony exclaimed. "You've got a brillant mind, you've got to have one idea in that head of your's!" She wasn't planning on admitting it, but her arms were beginning to tire and sweat was forming on her brow. The shadows seemed to multiply before their eyes; she'd slaughter one and three more would take it's place the next second. "Joe I can't keep this up for much longer!"

Joe nodded, he was still looking for some way to get them out of this, but this fog-

His eyes widened for a split second. Of course!!!

"Eb, I've got an idea!"

"About time." Ebony stated irritably. Joe ignored her comment, he was focusing all his powers of concentration on these shadow creatures; _the fog, in a way, blocks the sunlight from the Valley. These shadows thrive in Darkness. _He clenched his fist angrily, _there's only one problem with my plan, the sun has to have set by now. _

"Joe!" Ebony said desperatly.

He shut his eyes tightly, he'd have to rely on the chance that there was a full moon. His aqua aura formed around him and his eyes began glowing, he focused on the perimeter around them before rising his arms to his sides.

Ebony dropped her arms when she noticed that the bombardment of shadows had ceased. She was confused as to why until she noticed the fog had lifted. She spun around and saw that Joe was keeping a small amount of the fog at bay. She looked up and saw that a quarter of the moons were full and she jumped up and down in victory. "Joe you're wonderful!"

"Get the others," he said quickly. He knew that the red on his cheeks was completely visable on his pale skin, and the moonlight wasn't helping him conceal it.

"OH! Right!" she raced off into the foggy area to search for Meg and Kuro.

_TTT_

"Kuro!!" Meg yelled. She wanted to hit her head against a wall or something_; I can't believe I lost track of our guide! Idiot!! If he's gone I swear I'll hunt him down and kill him...that is...if we survive through this...Ohhhhh Joe and Ebony are going to be so mad at me_! "Kuro!!!" She felt her eyes begin to glow and she took out her rage on a small group of shadows that were unluky enough to be standing beside her.

"Meg, Kuro where are you!"

"Eb?"

The girl in question ran over to her and gave her a quick hug. "Good, you're okay. Have you seen Kuro anywhere?"

"He was with me, but..."

"It's this acursed fog!" Ebony said angrily. "I can see why everything's vacated this area. It would be impossible to survive in here."

"So...how do we find him?"

Ebony furrowed her brows in deep concentration. "There has to be a way..."

Meg slowly shook her head. "I don't know...we might just have to leave him..."

Ebony's head shot up at this suggestion. "We can't do that!"

"Why?" Meg demanded. "It's not like he's been much help so far." Ebony bit her lip. "You were in a group of trained assassins, you know as well as I that sacrifices are necessary sometimes."

Ebony closed her eyes. "Yes...sacrifices are necessary sometimes...but, if they can be avoided, they should." Her eyes flew open with a new determination within them. "Would you be willing to sacrifice him if he was as close to you as any of the others? I know I wouldn't. He's...difficult, I'll admit, but an ally nonetheless."

Meg didn't reply. What could she say. The Xidigan heiress had made up her mind and nothing was going to change it. "Fine."

Ebony shrugged off the forced tone in her voice and cupped her hands around her mouth "Kuro!!"

Meg grudgingly followed suite "Kuro!!"

"Ku-" Ebony stopped short as her trained eye caught something from the corner of her eye. She spun around and about ten yards away from their current spot was a strange purple orb.

"Meg."

"Told you it wouldn't work."

"Meg, do you see that?"

Meg gave her a confused look before following her gaze. "What the hell is that?"

Ebony just shook her head. "Let's go find out." She grabbed her companion's arm before rushing towards the strange light.

"Wait! What if it's another enemy that's just luring it towards with that weird light so it can eat us!"

Ebony rolled her eyes. "You've been listening to too many of Tai and Tar's crazy stories." She skidded to a hault several feet away from it; the light seemed to be surrounding a humanoid figure, almost like the Sages' auras but not as solid. She couldn't see the person itself, but the aura showed the outline pretty well. "It's Kuro."

"You sure?"

"Almost positive." Ebony advanced further and began running when Kuro dropped to his knees and collapsed on the ground. Finally she was close enough to see him clearly but the vision was not quite what she expected.

Meg wasn't affected by his altered appearence and raced to his side, "Kuro, are you okay?"

"Never felt better," he spat sarcastically.

Meg's eyes narrowed, she was definatly not a fan of sarcasm, "Do you want help or not?" Kuro clenched his teeth and slowly nodded. "Eb get over here!"

Ebony shook off the remaining shock and sat beside Meg. Her brain was still shocked by the sight of their guide; lengthened nails that looked more like claws, eyes that glowed a mystifying shade of purple, and, the most shocking of all, large bat-like wings sprouting out of his back. Ebony shook her head in disbelief, this adventure was introducing her to the strangest of things.

"Eb?" Meg asked, waving a hand in front of her face. Ebony caught her wrist on instinct and easily located the source of Kuro's pain. "There's a broken arrow in his left wing."

Meg turned her attention to the area Ebony mentioned and immediatly located the problem. Almost at the meeting point of wing and flesh was the tip of an arrow piercing through the leathery wing. She cringed at how uncomfortable that must feel. "Okay, Kuro, keep still. Eb, can you use your dagger to open the wound a little bit more so I can wedge the arrow through easier?"

Ebony nodded and unsheathed one of her many daggers, "I'm not going to lie, this may sting a bit." She carefully placed the tip to where the blood had stained the wing and worked the hilt back and forth, slowly opening the wound further.

Kuro hissed softly when the blade started digging into the soft tissure within his wings.

Sweat began to form on Ebony's brow. It was so much easier to kill things. Finally she removed the dagger from his wing to examine her work. There was more blood, but that was to be expected. Nodding with satisfaction she turned to Meg who nodded in return.

She grasped the cylindrical piece of wood in her tight grasp. "Ready?"

"Just do it." he seethed.

Meg ignored the aggression and gripped the arrow tighter.

_1..._

_...2..._

She ripped the arrow from his wing with a terrible sound that was unheard due to Kuro's scream which was dubbed worthy of a horror movie.

"Son of a-" Kuro started a small chain of curse words before slamming his fist against the ground in obvious rage.

Ebony and Meg watched him in silence, both were wondering when to pop the question.

Finally Kuro stopped panting and the two young women decided that it was now or never.

"Um...Kuro?" Ebony started nervously.

He slowly sat up and inspected his wing, pretending not to have heard.

"Kuro." Ebony said more forceful.

He sighed and turned his attention to his companions. "Let me guess; you want to know what I am, right?"

Meg nodded quickly.

He averted his eyes for a split second before locking them with Meg's. "As I told you before. Some pasts are best left forgotten, but it seemes as though mine's caught up with me again." He paused for a moment, blinking back and forth from one to the other. "I'm a demon."

Meg and Ebony sat in silence for a few seconds. "A what?"

Kuro sighed and put a hand to his forehead. "I'm half demon. My mother was a demon from this Valley and my dad fell in love with her and moved his house besides it."

"Now it all makes sense!!" Meg realized. "How you know your way around here so well and why the shadow creatures don't attack you!"

"It also explains the uhh...wings." Ebony stated.

Kuro rolled his eyes "No kidding."

Ebony clenched her fists and looked about ready to lunge at him when Meg held up her arm. "Arn't we forgetting someone?"

Ebony gasped and her hands flew to her mouth "Oh my goddess! Joe!!" She jumped to her feet and motioned for the other two to do the same. As soon as she was sure they would keep up with her she dashed into the fog. As she ran she kept her eyes glued to the floor, she was going to have to retrace her footprints in order to find him. "Joe!!" She cursed under her breath when she didn't recieve an answer.

She jerked left and right, according to her footprints, and every so often she would glance behind her to make sure Meg and Kuro were still behind her.

She halted suddenly when she noticed how the fog was thinner to her left. She squinted her eyes, trying to see deeper into the muggy atmosphere. She grinned when she caught sight of what she was looking for; the moon's reflection off of his glasses!

"Joe! I found them!" she said smiling as she rushed to greet the Water Sage. She got nearer and nearer and as she did she noticed that something wasn't right. "Joe?" He didn't respond. "Joe!!" She ran towards him, fear welling in her chest as she reached him...but it wasn't Joe at all.

Ebony slowly reached her arm forward as she took the pair of spectacles off a crook in a small tree.

"Eb, where's Joe?" Meg asked from behind her.

Ebony took the glasses from the tree and held them delicately, afraid that if she clutched too tightly they would disappear like their owner. "I...I don't know."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, OUCH!!!"

Izzy and Tk released Tar's neck with a frustrated sigh.

"Okay, obviously trying to pull these things off doesn't work!" Tar said angrily as she rubbed her rapidly redening (A/N: i don't know if that's a word...but u all know what i mean!) neck.

"Well I haven't seen you come up with any brillant ideas yet!" Izzy argued.

"Which is why I've been the test subject." Tar stated rolling her eyes.

"Guys!" Tk yelled. "We doesn't have time for this!" He motioned to Mimi who was rapidly losing color in her cheeks. He rushed over to her and placed his blood-covered hands over her wound to slow the bleeding.

Looking at their fallen friend Tar's face got a few shades paler and Izzy's mind started spinning, desperatly trying to find a solution.

"There's got to be a way! A weapon is only as strong as its weakest point."

"But what _is_ that weakest point! We've tried everything!" Tar huffed.

"What about the crests?"

Tar and Izzy turned to Tk with intrigued looks. "The crests?"  
"Well yea, the bands block our elements, not our crests." The other two contemplated the idea for a few minutes bfore Tar jumped to her feet and hugged the younger boy around the shoulders. "Tk, forget what I told you earlier, you're a genius!!" She looked over her shoulder and smirked, "A much smarter genius than _someone_ I could mention."

Izzy rolled his eyes but didn't reply back.

Tar reached around her neck to grab her crest but her hand came back empty! "Where is it!" She cried.

Izzy sighed. "You didn't notice it wasn't with you?"

Tar stood up and fumed. "My mind's been a little preoccupied!"

"Guys!" Tk yelled, he was getting a _little_ annoyed with their constant bickering. "Alright, so that idea isn't going to work, obviously."

"It might if we knew where our crests were." Izzy replied.

"Yea but wher-"

"Someone's coming!" Tk whispered.

The trio immediatly formed a protective barrier in front of their injured friends as the door was thrown open.

"Quit struggling you useless boy!"

"Useless!"

"Is that-?"

"Couldn't be-"

"Joe?"

The trio exchanged confused glances that quickly reverted to excited and relieved smiles.

"Joe studies medicine, he can help Mimi." Izzy whispered enthusiastically. They all sighed in relief, at least they had one problem solved.

LadyDevimon was in a foul mood. Gem was proving to be an important ally and even more important partner, but she was a tyrannt. She expected everything to go flawlessly and her orders to be obeyed without question...two things that she and Myotismon had in common, but LadyDevimon was more of the rebellious type and didn't particlarily enjoy taking orders from _ANYONE_.

The order wasn't too important; apprehend one of the escaped Sages while the other two were engaged in battle, no big deal, but it drove nails down the chalkboard of her mind to be ordered like some irrelevant pawn...but for all she knew she could be just that. She didn't honestly think Gem was trustworthy or on her side, but it was a good idea to have a position on the side with the most power, no matter who they may be. Which was why she wasn't planning on resigning from the Dark Masters just yet, just in case they pulled off some miraculious win that tipped the odds in their favor.

No. For now she would float back and forth between the opposing sides until she was certain which side would win.

She smiled at her own genius before she halted. She rolled her eyes and smacked a hand on her forehead. The Water Sages had fallen...for the tenth time in that same hallway. She roughly grabbed him by the back collar of his shirt and glared at him. "Do you and the floor have some sort of relationship?! I don't understand how a Sage of all people could be so clumsy!"

Joe squinted his eyes "Well, maybe if you'd listened to me when I said I left my glasses then we wouldn't be having this conversation." he stated calmly.

LadyDevimon clenched her fist and looked about ready to punch the weakened Sage but allowed her arm to fall limply to the floor. She grabbed his arm and the next time he fell she simply dragged him along like a rag doll.

She threw open the cell door and met the multi-colored eyes of the Sages, they were all giving her vicious glares but she could see the light behind their hateful expressions. She glanced at the Earth Sage who was steadily growing weaker. After admiring her handy work she glanced at the boy that she held in her grasp and smirked. _The Sages must believe this boy can help revive their friend._ she noted grinning. With a powerful thrust she tossed the blind Sage into the cell and slammed the door shut. The Sages weren't any good dead, might as well let him _try_ to save her.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"You heard!" Tai whispered furiously.

Kari laughed at her brother's undeniable embarassment; his cheeks were pink and she could almost hear his heart beat speed up. "Tai don't worry. Your secret's safe with me."

Tai gave her a skeptical look, "Uh huh, and I'm supposed to automaticaly believe you're not going to tell Tar or any of the other girls?"

"I'm not going to lie," Kari said smiling, "this is a very tempting situation and it would be the perfect thing to tease you about...but this whole deal with Sora is your business and I'm not going to tell anyone. Promise."

Tai stared at her for a moment, listening to the sincerity of her voice before nodding. "Alright. I trust you."

Kari grinned, "So...?"

"So what?"

"Are you going to tell her you like her?"

Tai sighed and leaned his head against the wall. He turned his gaze to Sora's sleeping figure beside him. A small smile graced her light pink lips, her auburn hair was hanging in her face slightly, overall she looked...beautiful. Even as he thought about her he found himself blushing and he hated it. Sora was his best friend! And he had to _constantly_ remind himself of this fact. He remembered the first time he saw Sora in a new light, it was during his summer in Windy Glen a few years ago. He was completely confused and confronted his father about it, and when he admitted it to him he could've sworn his dad said "Finally!".

It seemed that the only ones who didn't know if they'd end up together were himself and Sora.

"Hello! Digitania to Tai!"

"Wha-?"

Kari giggled. "I kind of lost you for a second."

"Oh sorry...just thinking."

"About Sora?"

"Maybe."

"You know Tai," Kari said, leaning against him slightly, "Sora's pretty lucky." Tai looked at her and cocked his head slightly. She smiled mysteriously but said nothing else.

The siblings sat in a comfortable silence before Kari lept to her feet.

"What's wrong?" Tai asked, noticing the immediate change of her facial expression.

"Someone's coming." she stated. She strained her senses to hear voices or a defenite difference in the way they walked, but after a few moments of intense silence she turned to her brother, "Tai, wake Sora."

He nodded and ran to the sleeping girl in the corner. "Sor wake up!"

Sora's eyes fluttered open slowly and she smiled slightly. "What's going on?" When neither answered she was snapped into full attention and noticed the concern flashing through both Kamiyas. "Guys?"

"Kari, do you know who it is?"

Kari shook her head slowly. "I do know, however, that they're wearing high heels."

"Gem or LadyDevimon." Tai reasoned. "Or Piedmon, his outfits are so crazy I wouldn't put it past him to wear heels." Despite the circumstances, the other two managed a small smile before the door burst open.

Gem glared at the three of them, "And what are the three of you smiling about?" The trio cast nervous glances at one another but didn't reply. Gem waited for several moments for one of them to say some smart-ass remark, but when none came she was brought back to what she was here to do. "I want the Sages of Light and Wind to come with me." Sora and Kari had looks of defiance on their otherwise calm faces and Tai glared at her with as much hate as he could muster. Gem could already tell that they weren't about to be seperated without some sort of fight.

Words weren't required, the Sages weren't about lose each other now that a few of them had been reunited.

Gem had expected nothing less, "I won't ask you again, Sages." Still no movement. Gem grinned maliciously and tightened her grip on the weapon in her hand. "Fine, I suppose I'll just have to _persuade _you."

_THWACK!!_

A cry of shock and pain was the only thing that proved the demoness had done anything. Sora and Kari turned to their friend before whipping their heads back to the cackling witch. She had one end of her black whip clutched tightly in her hand and the other coiled around her hand. Tai stumbled back a few steps, clutching the left side of his face and covering his eye from view.

"Tai!" Sora spun around but felt the impact of the deadly weapon on her back. "AH!"

"Sora are you okay!" Kari asked, she was desperatly supressing her fear to keep her eyes locked with the black coil.

"Fine." she lied through clenched teeth. The whip had twore through the skin on her back from her shoulder to her tail-bone and every movement was causing a great wave of pain to streak through her entire body.

"Now that you've seen what you're up against," Gem grinned, "are you ready to go peacefully? After all, I could do this all day." She pulled the black leather tighter in emphasis.

"How about we compromise instead."

Gem's eyes narrowed at the Sage of Light. "Compromise? Look around you foolish girl! You are in no position to compromise with anyone!"

"Well, technically, neither are you." Kari stated.

The corner of Gem's mouth twitched. "And what exactly do you mean by that?"

"You can't force us to use our powers, Gem. You can torture us all you want, but look at the Sages whom you've already tried this tactic on. Matt and Tai. Neither one have subjuected to you and neither one have used their powers to help you."

Gem, although she'd never admit it aloud, was impressed. "My, my, Sage. Taking after both Izzy and your brother arn't we? Courage is definatly a trait the Kamiyas have running through their blood and your knowledge of the situation is quite acurate, but your statement has one major flaw..." She smirked as her hands began to glow, "I _can_ control your powers!"

Sora suddenly gained a red aura, and, to the shock of both Kamiyas, grabbed Kari's shoulders and threw her into the metallic door.

Sora gasped, "Kari I'm so sorry! I couldn't- I don't-"

"Incredible what a simple gift can turn into with enough practice." Gem grinned, admiring her manicured nails before turning back to the Sages. "As I said before, Sages, you're not in the position to compromise with anyone. "So," she turned her dark eyes to Sora and Kari, "are you coming...or not?"

"I'm not going to leave Tai." Sora stated, darkening her eyes, "especially not with you."

Gem smiled sadistically. "Alright then." She snapped her fingers and a three Ogremon appeared behind her.

"That was the signal for us to come, right Mistress?"

Gem glared at their stupidity and pointed to the three Sages and after a few moments of careful consideration the Ogermon figured out what she meant and went towards each of the teens. The large green digimon forced their arms behind them in one hand and placed their clubs in front of them as if they'd rehearsed it (which they probably had to do numerous times). Gem eyed them all carefully, looking for any points of weakness that the Sages could escape through.

Satisfied, she motioned for two Ogermon to stand in the doorway, keeping one still stationed in front of her.

With his hands removed from his face the deep gash in his face was visable. The whip had cut through his skin from his eyebrow to his jawline, cutting across his eye, a deep cut, but it would heal eventually.

Gem traced her index finger over the gash and smiled at her handiwork. "You look like an old friend of mine with this." She paused her gentle coying when flashbacks of their last encounter flooded her senses. "I hated him for what he did to me." Tai smirked, he wasn't sure why, but the thought of someone causing her pain filled him with joy.

As if reading his mind Gem dropped her hand and addressed the lumbering green figure, "Beat him senselessly."

Ogermon looked about ready to jump up and down in jumbilation while the Sages looked at one another in fear.

"Tai!"

"No stop!"

Their cries fell upon deaf ears as they were dragged kicking and screaming away from their friend.

Gem halted before reaching the exit, an even crueller smile formed upon her lips. She spun around and walked back to the intimidating digimon and helpless human. She grabbed his chin and brought her lips toward the side of his head, "I hope you enjoyed your girlfriend's company. Now I won't have any use for her and I suppose I'll just have to kill her." She smiled madly at the result before crushing her lips against his.

Tai froze in a state of shock, he couldn't breath, he couldn't think, he couldn't move, he was rendered helpless...and it was the worst feeling he'd ever experienced. He shivered, it felt as though white-hot venom was being poured into his veins, his heart and lunges were being seared against the force of the acidic hellfire. He felt like he was burning up from the inside!

His mind was screaming at her to stop and the need for oxygen made Gem heed to his silent request She smirked as she caught her breath, maybe she'd find a use for him after all...

She spun on her heels and walked out of the cell, slamming the iron door behind her.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"Eb relax! We'll find him! He probably went looking for us and got lost."

"Without his glasses?" Ebony looked at her doubtfully. She took the object from a pocket within her cloak and inspected it for any cracks.

Meg held up her hands, "Okay. I admit that's a little weird...but it doesn't prove he was dragged away."

Ebony knelt on the ground besides the tree where his glasses were found, "Maybe not, but these do."

Meg and Kuro joined her on the ground and immediatly noticed what she had; two deep lines in the soft earth.

"The guy's smart. He left us a trail to follow him, he dug his heels into the ground so we could follow." Kuro nodded.

"And he left his glasses here so we could find them." Meg reasoned.

"This might lead us straight to the others." Ebony stated. She stood up and pulled the hood of her cloak over her head before following the trail.

"Kuro, do you know where this leads?" Meg asked as they walked behind the assassin.

"The last time I went this deep I remember finding an area where the fog was thicker and the trees were dead. It's the heart of the Valley, where the mist and shadows origionated. If your friends were taken here that would be the ideal hiding place; it's really dangerous because the poison in the mist can work faster in these conditions."

"Why?" Ebony questioned, keeping her eyes locked ahead of her.

"The trees have adapted to this harsh enviorment, so they can absorb the fog the way they would absorb water. It keeps them alive and keeps us alive longer too. But, like I said, all the trees further on are dead, so we get a more concentrated amount of the poison."

Ebony halted in her tracks. She turned to her companions. "Then it would be best if we covered our noses and mouths." She picked up the end of her cloak and ripped two pieces of fabric from the rest of the cloth. "Here, tie these around your faces." She herself drew up a piece that was already built into the hood of her cloak and continued walking.

Kuro did so without question but Meg stared at the purple cloth sadly. She clutched the fabric in her hand before lifting her gaze to her black-haired friend. "Eb?"

Ebony didn't respond.

Meg quickened her pace until she was beside her friend. "Eb...are you okay?'

"Yes." The sound of her voice was less than convincing.

Meg sighed, "Ebony. Don't beat yourself up. If you stayed with him think about how much worse things would be."

Ebony didn't say anything in return but kept her eyes glued in front of her.

"Give it a rest already." Meg turned around and glared at Kuro but he ignored it.

Ebony did nothing to indicate she heard him.

"Quit mopeing, geez. If you want to find him you've got to do something." Ebony still didn't say anything. "Oh, so are you just going to break down right here and cry just like the little girl you are?" This made Ebony stop. "Good, now that I've got your attention, listen up. I might be a pain in the ass at times, but I actually have some good advice from past experiences." Ebony looked over her shoulder. "Beating yourself up about something doesn't help the situation. The only thing that will help him is finding him and getting him out of this place, so Give. It. A. Rest."

"Give it a rest? Give it a rest!!" Ebony wheeled on her heels to completely face the half-demon. "I can't just drop it like that! Joe could be hurt or...or worse and it's all because I was too stupid to check the perimeter for more enemies! If something's happened to him-"

"Then quit moping and do something about it." Kuro interrupted calmly.

Meg glanced from Ebony to Kuro. Even though it didn't always seem like it, these two had more in common with her than most of the Sages. She still felt somewhat like an outsider with the rest of their group. The Sages had all met with one another at least once while she was still struggling to get to know them. Ebony was in the same boat as she was, although she was getting pretty close with Joe...That's why she liked Tai so much, he was one of the Sages that she didn't feel awkward around, the only other two were Kari and Izzy.

Meg snapped back to reality and glanced around in confusion. "Guys?" A wave of panic washed over her. "Ebony! Kuro!" _What if they were taken_! "Guys!" Fear began welling in her chest as painful memories flashed in her mind.

_Loud, angry knocks awoke her from her peaceful sleep. She was only five years old as she raced down the stairs, shivering as her bare feet touched the cold floor. She paused in front of the door, her hand reaching for the knob._

_"Meg?" _

_She spun around to see her father standing at the foot of the staircase, a green robe wrapped around him, concealing his sleeping garmets which were covered in yellow duckies; a father's day gift. "Daddy?" she whispered._

_The scene flashed ahead. _

_She was hiding under the kitchen table crying. Angry shouts could be heard upstairs as her mother screamed. Tears ran down her cheeks as she raced to where her father had fallen, a bullet wound in his head. _

Meg felt tears begin to roll down her cheeks. "No." she whispered. "I won't be left alone again!" _Every time I find something that makes me happy, it's taken away and I'm worse off than I was before!_

"Loneliness is such a heart-wrenching feeling isn't it?"

Meg snapped her head towards the source of the voice.

"The feeling of having absolutly no one. Complete solitude that slowly drives you into maddness."

Meg slammed her hands over her ears, "Shut up!"

The voice chuckled, "You don't want to hear what I'm saying because it's the truth. Everywhere you go all you bring is misfortune. Just look what happened to your parents...and now your friends. The only friends you've ever had."

"That's not true!"

"Why do you keep ignoring the obvious?"

"Because it's not true!" She quickly located the drag marks and dashed toward them.

"You can't run from your problems...Eventually your past _WILL_ catch up."

Meg tried desperately to block out the taunting voice as she raced through the Valley.

"Run. Run Meg, the Darkness is catching up."

"Leave me ALONE!" She stumbled as she ran, the fog was concealing everything and she had to take several sharp turns to avoid colliding with the mangled remains of trees.

"Would your friends still think of you the same way if they knew some of the things you've done?"

"Shut UP!"

"Is that why you've kept your past so secretive? Are you afraid?"

"NO!" she skidded to a halt, her breathing ragged and wheezing. Her vision was blurred from tears and her heart was racing. Each breath was getting harder and harder to get into her lungs. She slowly sank to her knees. _No...I have to help them. I'm the only one left..._ Her eyes shut and she passed out, the purple cloth still clutched tightly in her hand.

**TTTTTTTTTTTTT**

"Sooooo you're not really happy with working with Gem?"

"Of course not! The girl has some serious issues with the world and takes it out on her henchmen." Ogremon replied. "Ya know what I've always wanted to do? I wanted to be a dance instructor!" The giant green digimon's large eyes began to well up with tears at the thought of his lost dream.

Tai had to bite his lower lip to keep from laughing. "So why arn't you a...a dance instructor." He started laughing and quickly disguised it as a cough.

"Oh well, evil is my family's business. Dating way back to my great great great great grandfather; Atilla the Ogremon."

Tai shrugged, "So?"

"So it's a family tradition to be evil."

"If you don't like it than who cares about family traditions? I mean think of all the two left-footed digimon in need of dance lessons!" Again Tai had to disguise his laughter, but this was THE weirdest thing he'd ever heard of (which included pixies, magic, and prophecies)

An inspired look filled the Ogremon's face and his eyes widened. "Ya know what you're right! I could be fufilling my dream! Thank you so much my little friend! Can I do something for you in return!"

Tai grinned, "You could let me out of here."

Ogremon's smile (if you could call it that) drooped a bit. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I couldn't do that...if I did she'd kill me." Ogremon felt gulity, his new friend looked so crestfallen. "But, I might be able to keep an eye on your friends if you'd like."

This suggestion caught Tai's attention. "Could you find my friends Matt and Mimi?" Ogremon looked confused, "Ummm...the Sages of Earth and Ice?"

"Oh! Sure, I know where they are. They're with all the others."

Relief washed over Tai, they were safe and probably getting their wounds tended. "Do you know where my friends that were just here went?"

Ogremon's face looked grave, "I do."

Tai waited for him to elaborate, but he didn't. "...And?"

"Well uhhh...you should probably just forget about them, kid."

"You've got to be kidding me! That's my best friend and my sister I can't forget about them!"

"Look, I'm sorry. But that crazy girl is planning to...she's going to..." Ogremon's smallish brain was fighting against itself. He had been brought up to **_NEVER_** reveal the plans of an employer, but he was planning on quiting anyway... "Alright. Well, I heard she got her hands on a crest. The Crest of Love. She knows that one of the girl Sages has this crest, so she's planning on finding out which one of those two it is, then she's going to try and clone her to use the crest for her own evil purposes."

"Clone them?"

"Yea, she's got this really smart, know-it-all digimon named Datamon working with her." Ogremon explained.

"Damnit," Tai swore under his breath, "What's she going to do with the real Sages if this crazy plan works?"

"She'll probably kill them."

This four-worded statement cut through him like a knife. "Ogremon you've got to let me out of here. They're my friends and I've got to help them!"

"I already told ya I can't! She'd know it was me and kill me!"

"Urgh! Then can you release my other friends so they can help them?"

Ogremon thought about this for a moment, "I could try."

"Yes! Then go!"

"But wait, what happens if the crazy girl comes back? She'll expect to see you beaten senseless."

Tai inwardly groaned. He'd forgotten about that strict order. "Can I see your club?"

Ogremon hugged his most prized position, "Why?"

Tai rolled his eyes, "Just give it here." He pried the bone from the green digimon, who's eyes were unblinking as he watched him. Tai screwed his eyes shut as he cut a deep gash in his arm with one of the uneven spikes. (A/N: no my dear readers, Tai is NOT going emo)

"What are you doing?" Ogremon questioned.

Tai twore off his gloves and placed a hand over the wound, "Looking the part." Wincing slightly he dabbed some blood on his face and twore a slit in his shirt.

Ogremon was slightly impressed, the kid actually looked like he was nearly beaten to death.

Tai grinned with satisfaction. "There, now all I have to do is pretend I'm unconscious and we'll easily fool Gem or any of her cronies."

Ogremon nodded, "Alright, I'll go check on your friends."

"Wait. I doubt my friends will believe that you're an ally...no offense." He tapped his chin, trying to think of something that would convince his buddies that he sent this digimon. Suddenly an idea popped in his head. He fished in his pocket until he uncovered the item he was looking for. "Here," he handed Ogremon his mini-telescope, "tell my sister, the Sage of Shadows, that," he started blushing and rolled his eyes, "that I still remember the fireworks in her eyes."

Ogremon was completely confused as he took the object of obvious value, but the bulking digimon quickly walked out of the room and slammed the door shut to announce to anyone else in the hallway that he was leaving.

He quickly regained his bad posture and slumped down the hall. He tried to act as casual as possible when he was called to join a conversation with fellow Ogremon or other guards, but it wasn't easy. It was hard to keep a laid-back outside appearence when you were shaking with fear and bursting with joy inside.

Finally he reached the room where he knew the Sages were being kept. Sighing with relief he walked in.

The room was immediatly silenced, he had obviously interrupted some sort of discussion. Everyone's attention was now focused on him. He waved nervously before stepping up to the bars. "Umm...your friend Tai sent me."

The Sages looked at him like he just sprouted a second head. A girl with short brown hair that was tied back stood up and glared at him. "What sort of dumb plan is this? If this is some sort of "tell me where the others are, or your brother dies" threat then save your breath. The last person to see them was Joe, and he has no idea where they are now."

Ogremon realized that this must be the kid's sister. "Umm...your brother gave me this," he opened his hand and held the mini-telescope out for all the Sages to see.

Tar's eyes widened as she hesitantly took the object from the digimon's hand. The Sages crowded around her to see what object the fear-striking digimon could've brought that caused Tar to become speechless.

"That's Tai's," Matt stated with certainty. Shortly after Joe arrived Matt regained consciousness, he claimed to be fine although Joe said that if Gem had kept her hold for five seconds more Matt would've suffocated.

Izzy narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "he could've taken it from Tai to get us to trust him."

Joe nodded from his position beside Mimi, "I agree, there's blood on your club." Even without his glasses Joe managed to help Mimi, he asked all the Sages to tear the bottom seam of their shirts off so he could fasten it around her waist. Luckily, LadyDevimon's javalin-like arm had chosen it's mark between two ribs. Only the first few inches of the spear went through her, the rest was caught between her ribs, so there wasn't any internal bleeding or punctured organs. She lost quite a lot of blood, but after several days she'd be fine."

"Umm...he told me to tell the Sage of Shadows that he "still remembers the fireworks in her eyes"...does that mean anything?" Ogremon asked, scratching his head in confusion.

Apparantly it did. Tar dropped the mini-telescope.

"Tar?" Tk placed his hands on her shoulders. But Tar seemed to be in a different world.

_!!FLASHBACK!! (2 years ago)_

_"Come on Sora! The fair's fun!" _

_Sora struggled to get her wrists free from her best friends' grasps. "But I don't want to go, can't I just stay home with Kari?"_

_"No. Tomorrow's your last day before you go back to Windy Glen and who knows how long it'll be until we see you again! We're going to the fair whether you like it or not." Tar insisted._

_"Oh come on guys! Let's go to the lake or something!"_

_"Sor, the fair only comes once a year! We can't miss it!" Tai stated grinning._

_"Yea! We can't miss the awesome carnival food-"_

_"Or the rides-"_

_"Or the games-"_

_"Or the-"_

_"Alright! I get it! We can't miss the fair." Sora rolled her eyes, but a small smile tweaked at the corners of her mouth._

_Sora was dragged across the fair grounds ALL day, and as much as she hated to admit it, she was having a great time. There was a soccer game that all three of them played, and won of course, Sora was carrying a small stuffed Biyomon, Tar had a blue and black Elecmon, and Tai was having loads of fun with his mini-telescope. _

_"Oooh! You two should go on that one next!" _

_Tai and Sora followed her arm until their eyes landed on "The Tunnel of Love." The duo glared at her although they were both blushing. Tar began laughing hysterically. _

_Tai rolled his eyes, trying to find another ride to steer the topic away from where it was heading. "How about the Ferris Whell? We haven't been on that yet." _

_Tar was beginning to recover from her laughing episode and she grinned at the ride he chose, "Yea! We'll be able to see the fireworks perfectly from up there!" She quickly ran behind her brother and best friend and shoved them forward. _

_"Why are you so eager to get on the ride?" Sora asked suspiciously._

_Tar smiled mischeviously and kept pushing them towards the open gondola. She grinned as she forced the duo into the ride, "Have fun you two." _

_They ran up to the window and slammed their palms against the glass, shouting protests to their friend, but it was too late the door slammed and the latch was locked. _

_Tai and Sora were glaring out the window at their friend who was waving innocently below. _

_"We'll get her later," Tai laughed._

_Sora nodded, "Revenge is so sweet."_

_They plopped on the benches across from each other._

_"I can't believe you're leaving already, seems like you just got here." Tai said as he looked out the window. _

_"I know," Sora sighed, "This month went by faster than usual."_

_They sat in a comfortable silence, both enjoying the view as the city below grew smaller and smaller until it looked like they were floating above billions of tiny mulitcolored lights._

_"Wow..." Sora mused, her eyes wide with awe and happiness. "It's beautiful." _

_"You've never been on a ferris wheel have you?" Sora shook her head slowly. He grinned, "Then you'll love the fireworks." _

_As if on cue the faint whistling of a launching firecracker pierced the evening air. They both crowded by the windows as it exploded into a red flower with gold and orange stars surrounding it. Sora's smile brightened at the display and she linked her hand with Tai's without even realizing it._

_Tai blushed and turned his gaze away from the window to look at Sora. She turned her head at the same time and for a while their eyes didn't leave one another's. As the fireworks exploded around them they both had the same thought running through their heads. "I'm going to have to thank Tar when I get on the ground." _

_!!END FLASHBACK!!_

Tar snapped out of her trance. "He's telling the truth."

The Sages jumped at the sound of her voice, but didn't argue. The effect those words had on her and the confidence in her voice was enough to convince everyone in the room.

"So is my bone-head brother okay," she asked smiling.

"Well, he's shook up pretty bad thanks to that wacky tyrant, but he's not seriously injured." Ogremon replied. "OH! Before I forget. He also wanted me to tell you LadyDevimon and Gem's insane plot."

"You know it!" they all asked eagerly.

He nodded. "I'm sure you guys have noticed your crests are gone right?" Tar and Matt nodded. "Well, Gem managed to get her hands on the Crest of Love and is trying to clone either the Sage of Wind or Light so she can use the Crest for herself. And if the cloning process works she's going to clone the rest of you so she can have all the powers of the crests on her side."

"My. My. My. Isn't this an interesting turn of events."

All conversation stopped. A cloaked figure was standing in the doorway. "I came here to escort the Sages into the audience chamber and look what I get to present to my Mistress as well; a traitor."

The Sages, with the exception of Matt, we're all shocked at the familiarty of the voice. The accent and tone was the same as Trigger's!

"I see that you recognize my voice." he chuckled dryly. He smirked as he approached the Ogremon, the first thing he noticed was the blood on his club. "Ahh...so this is what Kamiya used to make it look like you followed orders. It's a shame really, now he's facing twice the punishment and you'll be joining him." He revealed something from the folds of his cloak and threw it at Ogremon. It was a black ring. The black ring immediatly latched on his arm and his eyes began to glow red. "Interesting little devices arn't they? The black rings. Once they find a suitable host, the host loses all his/her freewill and becomes a mindless zombie, for lack of better words." Although the hood still sheltered his face, the Sages could all tell he was grinning. "Let's test it on this buffoon shall we. Ogremon bring all the Sages into the audience chamber. Everyone else is already gathered."

Ogremon nodded dumbly before wrenching the door off its hinges. Trigger winced and glared at the idiot, "I'll have to fix that..."

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

Gem smirked as she watched the Sages struggle against their binds. There was no trouble figuring out who the Crest of Love belonged to, it gave off the same aura as the Sage of Wind the moment she came into the room, kicking and screaming. The Sage of Light was then taken to the opposite side of the room and shackled to the wall, while Sora was strapped to an opperating table in front of several humming generators with flashing buttons.

Datamon was scurrying around, adjusting numbers and fixing wires of all different colors.

"Datamon, is the machine almost ready?" Gem demanded.

"Patience, Patience, geez you're worse than Etemon."

"Etemon? Are you comparing me to that worthless monkey!"

"Hmm, I guess you're not as dumb as I calculated," Datamon mumbled to himself. "Of course not...stupid human." He made certain to lower his voice on the last part.

Gem glared at him but turned her attention to the northern corridor where her servants were arriving. "Finally." She jumped down from the raised platform Datamon was working on and stormed up to the cloaked figure. "So, I hear you discovered a traitor in our midst."

"More than one, actually." Trigger replied.

"Oh? And who might be the other?"

Trigger motioned to the back of the line where an unconscious General was being dragged along. Gem's eyes widened for a split second, "I'll admit I didn't see that coming. But it just adds to the fun. Tie him up with the rest of them."

Joe eyes widened when he was able to see all the faces in the room; LadyDevimon and Gem, all the Sages (including Meg), Ebony and Kuro, Trigger's gang, Datamon and Piedmon, and the two allies they met within the Valley. They were already tied/chained to the walls and they were watching closely as the remaining Sages were brought in. "Aw man, how're we going to get out of this one?" Joe whispered to Matt.

"I don't know," Matt replied honestly. "But there's got to be-Wait a sec! Tar, is that who I think it is, over there with Hornet!?"

Tar immediatly followed his gaze and gasped. "WAIT! If Trigger's over there then who's-?" She turned her head to the cloaked figure.

He chuckled dryly. "Oh, so you thought I was Trigger. Well it wouldn't be the first time he was put before me, after all he is my _perfect_ older brother." The Sages were staring at him dumbfounnded, but when he pushed the hood off his head recognition was immediate.

"Snake!"

Snake smirked. "I see you're surprised. I don't blame you, who would expect quiet, talentless Snake to be the villian in this story. I'm sure half of you even forgot my name already. But I'm sure if you think about it carefully you'll see that everything fits into place."

He smirked before walking to his place beside Gem and LadyDevimon.

"Well, this day is just full of surprises isn't it," Tai smiled weakly. "An Ogremon ally who wants to be a dance instructor, the general dude is actually on our side, Joe, Meg and Ebony became friends with a demon, and Trigger is actually innocent." When he finished this statement he mentally slapped his forehead. _Greeeeeeat, now I owe Sora an apology. She was right! Can this day get any worse!_

Gem suddenly turned to the Sages and her eyes focused on his and an evil sneer crossed her lips. _Me and my big mouth..._

Without moving from her present position she turned to the Ogremon and motioned to the wall behind her. It was the only wall in the whole room that was bare, almost like it was waiting for the Sages, its shackles open wide like welcoming arms.

"Well now that we're all here," Gem cast her eyes around the room at all her guests, evil and good were joined together in the same room, "Datamon is the machine ready yet?"

Datamon scowled, "Yes Mistress." He quickly attached yet another multi-colored wire and everything roared to life.

Gem grinned, "excellent." She would've skipped up to the platform if she didn't care about her evil image. FINALLY! After one failed plan after another she _finally_ had them! Her brillant eyes locked with all her captives as twisted ideas of torture began forming in her head.

She doubted the Sage of Earth would enjoy her hair being torn out of her scalp. The Sage of Water looked like he would scare easily...perhaps a room full of poisonous snakes...

"Mistress?" Datamon asked, his voice giving away his irritated mood. _First she rushes me and now she's up here smiling to herself and not doing anything!_ He rolled his only non mechanical eye.

Gem snapped back to the present, she would enjoy tormenting the other brats later, but the Sage of Wind was the first on her list. "I know that most of you have already heard about my plan..." she cast a quick glare at the Sages' allied Ogremon, "But I'm sure he didn't get all the facts straight." She opened her palm towards the ceiling and a redish glow hovered above her palm before dropping into her hand.

Several awed gasps echoed around the chamber. There was no denying it now, the Crest of Love was in possesion of their most feared enemy. She walked to one of the control stations and placed the crest in a claw-like container, beside it there was another similar container with a glass dome surrounding it.

"This isn't a cloning device, as you may have guessed." LadyDevimon added. "It's purpose is similar to cloning but-"

"Why don't we save the explaining, LadyDevimon. They'll know soon enough." Gem smirked. "Begin the process Datamon."

Datamon murmered something about bossy humans before twisting several knobs and typing several keys on a keyboard.

A beam of red light suddenly shot over Sora's head. Her eyes widened in fear as it hovered there. The room was silent for a moment, but the silence was shattered by a piercing scream.

"Sora!"

Pins and needles were striking her all over her body, her head felt like it was being split open. She couldn't handle this type of pain!

The Sages were all starring at her in horror. She was whipping her head back and forth beneath the restraint and she was desperatly trying to free her arms, which were pinned down by thick leather straps. "Stop!" She screamed, tears forming in her tightly shut eyes.

Glancing at each other in panic, the Sages rapidly began to think of a way out of this, but without their powers none of their ideas seemed possible!

Tai had never been in a situation this hopeless before. No matter what the obstacle or who was missing there was always an escape route, but Gem had thought of all scenarios and made certain that none were possible. But there was one...

Tai clenched his fists, the only plan he could think of required something that he didn't have.

Sora screamed again.

It was agonizing to know how to stop pain from being inflicted upon someone but not being able to do so!

She screamed again, only this time it struck a cord within him. It was his name she had cried.

He turned his hatefilled eyes to Gem, who was staring straight at him, as was everyone else in the room. She grinned that sadistic grin of her's_. I win, Tai._

"NO!"

Then everything went black.

_TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT_

_'Did I just pass out?' Tai asked himself. He rubbed the back of his neck and slowly rose to his feet. He was standing in the middle of nothing. Everything was completely black, the only light source seemed to be coming from him._

_"Where am I?" _

_"In your mind."_

_Tai jumped, he didn't really expect anyone to answer his question. "Who are you?"_

_"Well, we're in _your_ mind, so isn't it kind of obvious?" Tai opened his mouth to speak, but the voice cut him off, "Don't answer that. I already know what you're going to say." _

_The darkness suddenly parted in front of him, but the light that shone through was so blinding that Tai raised his arms in an effort to shield himself against the blaze of white light. _

_"Don't worry, those stars will be gone when you leave."_

_"How do you know what I'm going to say?" Tai questioned, blinking several times until his eyesight was clear again, but once it was he realized he didn't need the answer. He was staring at...himself?? Only he looked different...older, and he had white wings sprouting from his back._

_"Before you ask, no you're not dreaming and no you're not going insane. I am you in three years. And no I did not just return from a valentine's party where I lost a bet and had to dress up as cupid." The older version of Tai started laughing at that last comment, knowing that it crossed through his younger counterpart's thoughts just before he said it._

_"I'm confused." Tai stated. "So this is my mind (seems kind of empty), you're me from the future, and I'm here why??" _

_"You're here because I'm going to help you." older Tai replied, grinning._

_"Help me?" _

_"Yes. I remember the day you're going through quite clearly, it remains to be one of the worst days of my life, but it was also the beginning of some of the most important events you'll face." He smiled. "I'm only allowed to reveal a few things to you, otherwise the entire future could suffer." Tai nodded. "Trigger will no longer be a threat to you, in fact he becomes one of our greatest alliances, so you can start trusting the guy. But the most important thing I have to tell you is what's been bothering you all week."_

_"When I did something but don't remember doing it?" Tai asked hopefully._

_Older Tai nodded, "Yes. Tai, I'm sure you remember your meeting with your dark side, Taichi. He resides inside of you and is the source of every dark emotion you experience. But certain emotions give him enough strength to take over, rage and fear are two of these. Tai, I know you've noticed by now that we're different from the others, and although I can't tell you why I can tell you that you're dark side is the same as you are in that aspect. He is the evillest being on Digitania, even darker than Gem, and if he gains control over you..."_

_"Everyone pays for it," Tai finished. _

_Older Tai nodded, "Right. So you have to learn to keep your temper in check. If your frustration and anger become too great go...jump in a lake or something." both Tais smiled at this. "But that doesn't mean you can't get mad. Anger can be a great power increaser, you just have to control it, which is why I'm here."_

_"Huh?"_

_Just as quickly as the darkness came, it was gone._

TTTTTTTTTTT

Tai blinked. "No way!"

The scene was frozen before him, no time had passed since his meeting with his future self.

"You know, this girl is responsible for more deaths and suffering than all of the Dark Masters combined." Tai turned his attention to his older self, who was standing beside Gem with a dark look in his silver eyes. "Right now, I could completely erase her from exsistance and spare you all the horrible things she's put me through...but no matter how much I want to...I can't. As much as I hate to admit it...if it wasn't for her I wouldn't be the person I am in the future..."

"So without meaning to, she helped us?" Tai asked.

Older Tai nodded with a small smile quirking at the corners of his lips, "She made us stronger in more ways than one." He looked up at his younger self, then back at Gem. "Alright, when time starts again, you're going to feel the same emotion you felt when it stopped; anger. When it hits you don't fight it, but don't let it consume you. I can help you control it, but I can only do so much."

Tai nodded, "I'm ready."

Older Tai smirked, "I knew you would be." And with that he disappeared.

Tai stared at the empty space for a moment until Sora's screaming began ringing in his ears again. Instantly the rush of pure anger coarsed through him like molten lava.

_Trust in your powers_

Tai nodded and the temperature in the room suddenly sky rocketed.

Gem sighed happily _Ahh music to my ears_.

"Mistress!"

Gem scowled, "What is it you useless pile of scrap metal!"

Datamon glared at her, "Forgive me "_Mistress_" but I think this is much more important than your senseless daydreaming." Gem glared at him. "According to the temperature gauge programed into my units the temperature around here is increasing at an abnormally high rate."

"What?" Her eyes widened in shock, "Snake, check the boiler room, make sure everything is shut off! Piedmon check on those idiots you hired, I told you that minions were not required and only get in the way! If they've caused any damage to this place I'll make sure to personally slit your throat!" The two left without a word. "Datamon, can your "_amazing knowledge_" find the source of the increasing heat?"

"I'm busy making sure that the engines on _your_ machines don't explode due to pressure malfunctions." Datamon snapped.

"Listen you pathetic excuse for a can opener," She charged her dark magic and caused the aura to form around Datamon. "if we don't locate the source, those engines blowing up are going to be the least of your problems." A crack slowly crawled down his glass head.

The Sages were just as clueless as the villans.

"What's going on?" Joe asked.

"I have no idea." Tar murmered. "Hey wait! Sora's not screaming anymore!"

It was true. While everyone was bustling about trying to stop the horrible heat, Sora had gone unnoticed. She was lying on her metal bed, panting. Her hair was sticking to her forehead and she was shaking all over, but other than the horrible migraine that was beating through her skull like wardrums she felt fine.

_"Sora?"_

She blinked and slowly turned her head to the sound of the voice. "Tai?"

He flashed her one of those award winning smiles, but there was something different about him. _"Don't worry. I promise that you'll be fine when this is all over." _

"You're-You're the Tai I met in my dream. Arn't you?"

He nodded, still smiling, then disappeared.

_"Ready?"_

Tai nodded, smirking, "When arn't I?"

"Tai who're you talking to?" Matt asked. Tai didn't respond. He shut his eyes in fierce concentration and the air around him grew even hotter. By now nearly everyone in the room had their eyes fixated upon him.

Snake burst through the door with a panic stricken look on his face. "Mistress! The boiler rooms are fine, this is the only place in the entire Valley that is experiencing this strange phenomenon!"

Gem's eyes narrowed, "Impossible! The only way for there to be a concentrated area that is experiencing strange behavior is by..." Her eyes widened, "Magic!"

The shackles around Tai's wrists suddenly melted to the floor, the scorching heat no longer bothering him. His eyes snapped open to their firey red and his orange aura slowly engulfed him.

"I thought she said their magic was restrained!"

"Who cares lets get out of here!"

All the lesser minions vacated the area with their arms flailing above their heads and screams escaping their lips, but no one paid them any mind.

"H-How is this possible?!?!?!" Gem demanded.

"Did you really believe your magic could surpass mine?" Tai smirked. Gem didn't reply. He held his arm up to the side and turned his palm towards the wall his friends were still stuck to. Instantly the restraints melted and they were all free!

"Trgger, get Mimi out of here." Tai ordered.

Trigger nodded and raced toward the still unconscious Sage. He scooped her in his arms bridal style and turned back to the Sages, "Good luck guys."

"Kuro, go with them!" Meg yelled as she and the rest of the Sages split up to help Tai and Sora.

Gem narrowed her eyes, "Piedmon, LadyDevimon, take care of the others."

The entire room was soon a battle field but within the midst of the action Gem and Tai stood, their powers radiating throughout the room. They were the only two in the vast room that had active magical abilities, so at the moment they were the most powerful adversaries.

"How did you get your powers back?" Gem demanded.

_"Don't answer." _

Tai nodded, he hadn't planned to since he himself didn't have the faintest idea.

"What's this? No witty remark? No insult? Not even a threat?" She narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

Tai smirked, his aura increasing in size and strength. "Not scared are you?" His voice had an echo in it, like a second layer that was slightly deeper.

Gem's eyes flickered with amusement. "Scared? Hahaha, you give yourself too much credit. There's nothing about you that could frighten me." Her own aura began gaining power. Tai didn't back down and his firey eyes shown with determination and confidence. "So you want to play, do you? Fine. I've been looking for some entertainment anyway." She slid into a pool of darness at her feet and disappered from the battle ground.

_"Use your sixth sense. Piximon trained you for a reason."_

Tai closed his eyes and willed the sounds around him to hush. Everything around him went dark.

_"Concentrate. You know how to handle this."_

Tai nodded curtly, barely paying attention to his older counterpart's words of wisdom. He couldn't afford to miss anyth- There! His eyes snapped open and his hand flew through the part of the air that he sensed a disturbance. His smirk broadened at the results.

Gem's eyes were widened, "H-How?!" Her hand was clenched in his, her nails still lengthened as if to slash across his face.

Tai chose to let his magic answer for him. He raised his other hand and conjured a large gold and orange flame. Without hesitation he thrust the scorching flame into her chest.

She staggered back, her hand released, and clutched her breast where smoke was still rising. She removed her hand and saw that there was blood clashing with the shadows that kept her identity secret. Her eyes narrowed and she lifted her head to her opponent. His hand was still outstretched from his attack and he seemed to be debating whether or not to finish her off now and end his suffering.

_Why can't I just kill her now! She''s done nothing but hurt me and my friends, so why am I hesitating!? _

_"Because she's human. And because you have faith that she might just be lost and not truely evil."_

Tai lowered his arm and turned away_. That might be true but..._

_"I understand. I _am_ you after all." _

Tai nodded and turned back to Gem, he might not be able to kill her, but he wasn't about to let her get away without a fight.

_TTTT_

"Joe, Izzy don't! Please, go help the others. I'll be fine."

"Don't be ridiculious Sora, we're not going to leave you here. Besides, without my glasses I'm not much help to them anyway." Joe gave her a small reassuring smile. "Now let's see...I guess we can just GAH!!" He recoiled his hand from the powerful shock. "Okay, so I'm guessing there's some sort of electric field surrounding you. Great."

"Hmm...I bet we could disengage that electrical field using Datamon's computer." Izzy suggested. He ran towards the other side of the room and his fingers began flying across the keyboard. He paused for a moment and narrowed his eyes, "Damn."

"What's wrong Izzy?" Joe asked coming up beside him.

"There's alot of high tech security on this thing, it might take me a little while to break through all of it."

"So...are you saying you can't do it?"

"I never said that." Izzy stated. His mind going back to the task at hand.

Joe nodded and returned to Sora, "Don't worry. Izzy will figure out how to get you out of there." Joe reassured.

Sora nodded before allowing her eyes to wander, "Hey Joe, is that...Mimi's crest?"

Joe blinked in surprise before following her gaze. "It is!! Be right back Sora!" He raced back to the computer where Izzy was still typing and halted. Resting in seperate glass cases, much like the one the crest of Love was being held in, were four brightly colored crests. Tar's dark blue one; Trust, Matt's light blue one; Friendship, Mimi's green one; Sincerity, and...a grey one? He furrowed his brows in confusion. Had Gem found two crests?

He reached out for the mystery crest and, to his complete surprise, it began glowing!! He gasped, this was _his_ crest! Eager to have it in his possession he ripped the glass case off and took it in his trembling hands.

_Joe Kido_

_Sage of Water_

_Bearer of Reliability_

_Gifted with the power to Heal_

Joe smiled and placed it over his head and relished at how wonderful it felt to have it hanging around his neck.

"Joe watch out!"

Joe was snapped back to reality when a knife whistled past his face and struck the computer screen beside his head. He jumped and turned to find Piedmon standing behind him, Ebony was lying behind him.

"My, my, so another Sage has found his crest. This just adds to the fun." Piedmon's lips curled into a cruel smile.

Joe glared at him, but an idea suddenly dawned on him. _My crest_! He grinned, "Yes it does." He screwed his eyes shut in concentration and suddenly the band around his neck shattered! "Yes! Izzy you were right!"

_TTTTTT_

Gem dove to the ground as another stream of fire was shot at her. She pounded the floor with her fist_, Damn! How am I supposed to fight back when i can't even get near him!_

"Give up yet?"

Her eyes narrowed, "Not a chance." She rose into a kneeling position and sent dark magic racing for his feet.

He noticed this and quickly zig-zagged out of the way, easily avoiding it and allowing it to harmlessly slam into the wall. He then vertically sliced the air with his arm and sent a wave of flames in her direction. She thrusted her arm forward and the fire split into two different streams which raced past either side of her face. When the walls of flame dispersed Tai was standing in front of her, he grasped her outstretched wrist and bent it back, keeping her from using it. She glared at him and brought her other hand forward, trying to cut through his arm with her black magic, but he managed to grasp this arm too! Gem tried to yank her arms free but his grip was too firm. She scowled at this inconvience until realizing that during their fight they backed towards one of the walls. Smirking, she grasped his wrists and ran up the wall behind her, soaring over him and landing on the other side, her arms free. She bent one knee and slid the other under his legs, breaking his root, his head crashed against the wall as he fell, but he caught himself before falling flat on the ground.

Gem smiled, "You see Tai, even with your powers you still don't stand a chance against me."

Tai snarled and slammed his foot into her stomache, sending her flying backwards. "I'd say you're wrong about that."

She gasped, wrapping an arm around her abdomen as she tried to regain the wind that was knocked out of her. "That was sneaky, dishonest, and downright me-worthy." She smirked, "Perhaps you're gaining something from our meetings afterall." She rose to her feet, "But even you don't know all my tricks." Gem opened her palm and a swirling red mist floated above her hand. He glared at her and a bright red and orange orb appeared above his hand too.

Preparing themseleves for a final attack they summoned all their energy. The attacks grew massive and their auras were so bright that they filled the room with orange and red. Tai's orb suddenly engulfed him and he was standing in a caccoon of fire that was steadily getting larger. Gem too was swallowed by her magic, and only her piercing eyes could be seen behind the scarlet magic.

With nothing to gain and everything to lose the duo let loose their attacks at their opponents.

_TTTTTTTT_

"I got it!" Izzy exclaimed. He raced over to Sora and quickly unlatched the binds.

"Thanks Izzy." she said smiling. She weakly pushed herself off the table but stumbled as her feet touched the floor.

"Careful." Izzy said as he clutched her shoulder to keep her from falling.

"I'm alright." Sora smiled, "just a little tired."

"Come on, let's get you out of here-"

"No!" Sora said sternly, "Not without you guys or my crest." She stood shakily on her feet before daring to take a step. She kept her hands clenched on the metal table to ensure that she didn't fall. She smiled as her walking grew more and more stable.

"Sora! Look!"

Sora stopped her slow progress and turned to where Izzy was looking. It was then that she noticed not only had they stopped what they were doing, but everyone had. But it was completely understandable since the scene was amazing.

"Tai," she whispered. She knew it was him, there was no doubting the power that was coming from that area of the room. The other was Gem, that much was obvious. But the power her friend was giving off surpassed her's by so much that Sora wasn't sure if this was a good thing or not.

The room was in silence other than the fierce crackling of increasing magic, and for several minutes this was the only sound to be heard.

Then everything errupted.

Fire and Darkness was thrust toward their opponent with the fierceness of a tornado. Good magic against Evil, Light against Dark.

Sora and Izzy immediatly ran towards the others who found shelter behind the computers. There was a bright flash of light before the magic that built up between the formidable foes exploded in a whirlwind of power. Vines, curtains, and tapestries were all ignighted, and Darkness flew across everything, sucking the light from them and ruining everything in its path.

The Sages were restless in their hiding place as they worried about their leader.

At last, the roaring ceased and the Sages raced out to find out who won the duel of power and strength.

"Tai!" Tar and Kari raced towards their brother, who was still on his feet. Gem, on the other hand was lying on the ground.

The Sages cheered as they raced towards their friend. Tar and Kari were first to reach him and they embraced him in a tight hug. "You always have to be the hero, don't you." Tar teased. Tai smiled.

Matt and Izzy clapsed their hands on his shoulders. "That was impressive, I'll admit."

"Thanks Matt." Tai grinned. "But what happened to LadyDevimon and Piedmon?"

Ebony grinned and pointed to their unconscious forms behind her. "They won't be bothering us for a while I bet."

"And look who else is back to normal." Tk grinned.

Ogremon was standing beside him with an apologetic look on his face. "I'm sorry guys, that black ring just kinda...made me lose it for a while."

"We forgive you Ogremon," Kari smiled.

Sora smiled and hugged her best friend. "Thanks Tai."

Tai hugged her back, "What are best friends for."

"Tai Sora!" Kari yelled, interrupting their "moment".

The duo followed her fearful eyes and saw what she had been dreading. Gem was rising to her feet, her eyes dark, but her deadly aura weakening. She turned her gaze from the semi-circle around her prey before meeting Sora's gaze.

For an terrorizing instant Sora was sure Gem was planning to leap up and attack her to release the rage she felt from being defeated. But the next second Gem made a mad dash toward the podium where the Crest was still laying.

Sora's eyes widened but her instincts kicked in and she raced toward the same object.

The competition between Sora and Gem seemed to pass in slow motion before they both reached out to grasp the prize.

Gem wove her fingers around the string of the tag, while Sora actually touched the red rectangle that possessed so much power.

Her eyes widened as fear welled in her chest, a flash of red light blurred her vision andshe was afraid she had been hurt and was about to pass out! _I can't! I can't! Gem will get the crest! My crest! The others need me! Tai needs me!_

She no longer felt the crest in her palm and her vision swirled with reds and blacks. She screamed in fear when her surroundings melted around her. She was laying in a fetile position on a floor of some kind, all around her was darkness. She screamed again "Help!" And to her surprise everything stopped spinning.

She blinked numerous times, rubbing her eyes with the backs of her palms to clear the lingering specks of red, but when she opened her eyes she felt certain that she had passed out.

"Oh my Goddess, not again."

She was standing outside that magnificent castle she had dreamed about almost a month ago; same stones, same pictures, same landscapes. (A/N: Yes my dear readers, it is in fact another vision!!)

"Sora!"

Sora turned her head towards the caller and saw Kari running briskly toward her.

Sora smiled and waved cheerfully, but Kari's face was twisted with fear and her hand fell limply to her side. "Kari, what's wrong?"

Kari didn't reply, tears were rolling down her cheeks and she grabbed Sora's wrist with a surprisingly firm grip. She said not another word but began dragging her inside the castle.

Sora didn't even have time to gawk at the beauty of the corridors, not that she wanted to at that moment anyway, Kari's face held too much fear to allow Sora to enjoy her sightseeing.

"Kari! What's going on?! Where's Tai?"

Kari shook her head, her bitter tears seemed to have multiplied and Sora felt her stomache clench. "Did something happen to Tai?!" Kari tightened her grasp on Sora's wrist as they stormed up an elegant staircase with an emerald green carpet stretched out over them. She glanced around and noticed that all of the staff within the castle were running in the same direction, but all parted as Kari and Sora streaked by.

Finally their seemingly endless running stopped outside a door where nearly all the Sages were crowded outside.

She did a quick head count and noticed that Joe, Tai, Tar, and Matt were all missing.

Kari raced up to Izzy and clutched onto his arm. "Has anything changed?"

Izzy solemly shook his head. "Joe hasn't come out yet...I'm...I'm afraid..."

Kari shook her head feverishly. "NO! NO, NO, NO! Joe won't-, he can't!" she sank to her knees and sobbed. Tk was at her side in an instant. He wrapped his arms gently around her shoulders and kissed her softly on the lips, she burried her face into his shoulder and he moved his arms to around her waist and brought her closer to him.

Sora had been staring at the couple, she felt her heart flutter at the sight of them, but the dense aura around her kept her from rejoicing that they were finally together.

Mimi suddenly sprang from her chair, and Sora realized that while she was inwardly congradulating the two youngest Sages she had missed Joe's exit from the room.

"Well?" Mimi asked anxiously.

Joe stared into her eyes for a moment, but he couldn't hold the stare for long and he averted them to the ground. Tears were leaking from his eyes and sliding up against his glasses, but he didn't seem to care. He turned to all those gathered and slowly shook his head.

Kari released a cry of sorrow and wailed into Tk's already soaked shirt. Mimi's eyes were wide, as though the action hadn't been processed in her brain yet, she raced over to Izzy and threw her arms around his neck and sobbed quietly. Izzy's body was shaking and it looked as though his knees were about to fail him, tears were glimmering in his eyes as he held Mimi.

Sora didn't know what was happening, but before she could ask the surroundings changed again.

She placed her hands on her temples as she waited for everything to come into focus. She opened her eyes and regreted leaving the depressed scene, this was far worse.

It was a chamber of some sort. There were no windows, and the only light came from a group of flickering candles in the center of the room. The center of the room was circular, with large metal walls opening up to her. She squinted in the darkness and realized that these weren't just walls...these were cells. Cages. Sora turned around frightfully and saw that manacles and chains were bolted into the walls on either side of the entrance. Her breath was caught in her throat and she gasped as the vision she saw next.

Battered and bleeding, a young man was curled in a corner of one of the cells. His wings were hiding the effects of severe torture as they sheltered his body against the chilly air and wet stones, his hair was even more wild than usual and a a few tresses were dripping with blood. His handsome face was black and blue in some areas and his eyes were shut tight against the plaguing nightmares.

Sora's heart wrenched at the sight of her best friend and, without her realizing it, she crashed to the floor in front of the barred door. "Tai." she whispered, tears were filling her crimson eyes. At the sound of her voice Tai's eyes flew open, his arms pushed his upper torso off the ground as he looked at the cell with slightly fearful eyes.

Sora felt the tears roll down her cheeks. "Tai. It's me."

"Sora?" he rasped. He shook his head and placed a hand on his throat. "Sorry, don't talk much in here." He forced a small smile but stayed where he was.

She gave him a weak smile and wiped her eyes. "You don't look at all surprised to see me."

"I guess it's because I'm not." he stated.

"Tai...what...why-"

"Am I here?" he finished.

Sora nodded, she wasn't sure she could reply if she wanted to.

"I can't tell you that Sor. I could mess up the whole time-line. And before you ask, yes I know that you're not the Sora of my time, yes I know what time-line you _are_ from, and yes I know what you're going to say before you say them." Tai replied.

"Well...okay then, why am _I_ here then? You didn't answer that one."

Tai repositioned himself and sat crosslegged in front of her. "You're here because there's something happening right now, in my time-line, that will alter your's. You need to see something here that will bring up questions in your time. The answers to these questions that you will recieve in your time will help...and hurt...the future." He suddenly started laughing, "I just sounded like Genni!"

Sora smiled, but stopped when she saw him wince and rub his jaw with a hateful glance toward the entrance.

"So...you're going to tell me something that will alter my time-line?" Sora questioned, in all honesty her head was spinning with all this talk of alternate time-lines but she was determined to hide her confusion from her best friend.

"Not exactly." he replied. He opened his mouth to say more but he was interrupted by the fierce yelling outside the prison chamber.

Tai lept to his feet and looked at the door "Sora, she can't see you, but you have to hide your aura so she doesn't sense you."

"H-How," Sora stammered, seeing Tai worried about his captor(s) made her nervous. _If he's afraid of them then what are they capable of? _she asked herself.

"Try and imagine yourself somewhere tranquil, imagine that you're magic is up in the air where it belongs." During the time he said this his eyes never left the door.

Sora nodded weakly and crouched beside his cell just as the door burst open.

"Frigging bastards! Can't get a god damn thing right!" she screamed. Sora narrowed her eyes...why did that voice sound like someone she'd met before.

Tai leaned casually against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. "World domenation not working out too well?"

"Shut it Tai. The last thing I need right now is a smart-ass slave." she snapped.

"If I remember correctly _Mistress, _our agreement focused on getting me here, not what I would do while I was here."

Sora heard the legs of a chair screech as the occupant stood up. Fear welled inside her chest when Tai took a few steps back, but it made no difference, in a few seconds a red aura surrounded him and he was pulled against the cell door. Sora watched from her position in the corner, she still hadn't gotten a glimpse of Tai's captor.

"Tai...I don't understand why you have to be such a pest." she grasped his neck through the bars and Tai winced. "Your friends can't save you this time, you're rightfully mine. If I tell you to jump you say..."

"I would say "why the hell are you telling me to jump when you know I'll argue, so why are you wasting your time and mine when Matt and Sora are going to kick your AHHH"

She dug her nails into the flesh on his neck and watched as five trails of blood slithered down his neck. "I'm surprised you haven't learned by now, _my pet, _when you mouth off," she tightened her grip, "you get punished." She gently ran her nails from his neck to his back and rested them on his wings. She carressed them gingerly before grabbing them and pulling them backwards with a sickening ripping sound. Tai screamed in agony and clenched the bars, the next second, though, she threw him backwards and Sora got her first look at the demoness.

"Meg!" she gasped.

Her red hair reached her mid-back and she was wearing more revealing and darker clothes but it was Meg without a shadow of a doubt. Meg grinned and unbolted the cell with her magic, she walked in a stood over Tai, who was still laying on his back. She cackled evilly and knelt on the floor to whisper in his ear. Sora couldn't hear what she said but Tai's eyes flashed and the next moment her lips were pressed against his.

Sora felt a wave of nausia wash over her as once again her surroundings changed. But she couldn't leave Tai there! Not in the clutches of...Meg...

Everything stopped spinning, only this time she was back in her own time-line.

"Sora! Oh thank the goddess! Guys she's okay!"

Sora blinked. She was lying on her back, but where? She tried to sit up but someone lightly put pressure on her shoulder, insisting that she stay down. "Where...are we?"

"Outside of Vile Valley."

"What happened?"

"You tried to get your crest from Gem and passed out."

She nodded slowly as everything began coming back to her. "T-Tar Is everyone okay?"

"Honestly Sora, you need to put yourself above everyone else once in a while. Yes, they're all okay. Tai fell asleep not too long ago, he was exhausted, I'd go wake him up but we all know he could use the sleep."

Sora felt fear rise in her chest, she just couldn't shake the images from her mind about Tai. "C-Could you get him please. I-I need to know that he's okay."

"He's fine Sora," she was looking at her friend with concern, "Sora, you look like you've just seen a ghost. What's wrong?"

"Tar...I had another one of those visions." Sora said quietly.

Tar's eyes widened, "You did? So that's what happened to you! Joe thought it was something about stress, HA! So what happened...or...what happens?"

Sora started shaking, "Tar, it was the worst thing I've ever seen."

Tar's smile vanished, "And let me guess...it has something to do with Tai, right?" Sora nodded slowly. "Okay, I'll get him."

"No, no. I-I'm okay. Besides, like you said, he needs the sleep."

Tar rolled her eyes, "He can sleep anytime. Whatever you saw, Sora, I can tell that it upset you alot, and I doubt you'll get any rest unless you see him." Tar stood up and left Sora alone with her thoughts.

Sora felt a tears welling up in her eyes and she stubbornly tried to find something to occupy herself with. She looked around and realized where they were. They back tracked all the way to the campsite they used several nights ago. Everyone was there; the Sages, Trigger's gang, Ogremon, and Kuro the demon guide. They were such a strange group, and yet she knew that all these people would end up playing important roles with them again.

"Hey Sora."

Sora's head snapped towards the owner of the voice and a relieved smile crossed her lips. "Hey Tai."

He took a seat beside her and smiled, "I'm glad to see you're up...but something's bothering you."

"Did Tar tell you?" Sora questioned.

"Nope. I can just tell that there's something troubling you. What's wrong?"

Another picture of his fate flashed through her mind and she threw her arms around him. "I had another vision Tai." She felt tears stinging her eyes, but she didn't care.

Tai felt her warm tears beginning to soak through his shirt and he instinctivly wrapped his arms around her tightly. "What did you see?"

"I...I saw...Tai, I saw you." She broked into another fit of sobs. "You were hurt Tai, and she was calling you so many awful things like slave and pet and...I couldn't help you."

"Wait, Sora. Who did all this to me?"

Sora's tears immediatly dried up as she felt fury rise in her chest. "It was Meg."

"What?" Sora pulled out of his embrace and stood up, her fists clenched. "Sora, that can't be-"

"It was her Tai. Sometime in the future Meg's going to betray us!"

**TTTTTTTTTTTTTT**

me: MUWAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHA I'm so evil . But I had to leave it off right there, i just couldn't resist!! lol.

YAY IT'S DONE!!! IT'S FINALLY DONE!!! Phew, I hope it's good , i worked really hard on this chapter, since there had to be so much in there!

SO TAI GOT HIS POWERS BACK AND MEG'S FINALLY BEEN REVEALED AS THE VILLANESS IN THIS STORY!!! DUN DUN DUNNNNNNNN, but the question is, will anyone believe Sora?? only I know the answer . Arn't I evil!! lol. Well, i'll update this chapter as soon as i possibly can! And (hopefully) that will be soon!! But again, i'm not making any promises. AND DON'T FORGET!!! You guys have to tell me whether or not you think me writing a remake is a good idea or not!! it's up to you my wonderful reviewers!! LUV U ALL!!!! So REVIEW!!!!

UNTIL NEXT TIME!!! LATERZ!!!

CS

(OH for the reviews below, i know it's been a while since u guys reviewed (grins sheepishly) but i HAD to write back!!)

_**Digimaniac: **Hiya buddy!!! lol, u risked getting caught by ur mom to read my story!! WOOOOW, only a true fan would do that!! YaY!!! lol. Awww...(blushes) I'm glad u like my story so much, and i hope this chapter didn't disappoint!! AND i hope it made up for the long wait . Trigger's a jerk in the first chapter, i HAD to make him that way to get Sora to admit that she's jealous of Meg, but he gets better , and he will no longer interfere with Taiora! YaY!!! (grins) Impressive translation, the stuff that you managed to translate is correct YaY U!!! (grins sheepishly) lol, the parts where i put Meg instead of Gem were wrong, lol. I hate it when i do that! but we all know she's the bad guy, so luckily it doesn't screw up the story too much, lol. And yes i did!! And guess what!! Meg's past will be revealed in the next chappie!! YaY!!! lol (can u tell i just had a TON of sugar (grins)) THANX FOR THE REVIEW BUDDY!!! LUV YA!!! C-YA!! (OOh!! And write back about my crazy idea for a remake! Syd thinks it's an awesome idea, but i need ur opinion too!!)_

_**HyperAnimeGirl**: I totally agree with the "school works with the devil" idea!! School needs to DIE!!! lol. Well, i hope this chapter cleared up all ur questions , and i hope u luved it!!! lol, i hate that i couldn't get this updated sooner!! THANX for the review!!! U ROCK!!! (grins) And i hope the wait was well worth it . i'll have the next chapter up soon!! LATERZ!!_

_**Beowulf**: Cool name!! lol. Anywayz, i'm glad u like my story . And i'm planning on having some more Tar x Matt stuff in the next chapter, but I gotta say that from here on out everything just gets more violent, although the next chapter will probably not have so much, unless i cange my mind at the last second . THANX for the review!! U ROCK!! _

_**azn3xdawgg: **(smile vanishes) I appreciate the constructive critisism, but my story DOES have a point whether you choose to read far enough to see it or not. And about the whole yard thing, (laughs nervously) i know, that was totally wrong, haha, i meant to write miles, but i didn't catch myself until after i submitted it (slaps hand on face) Baka CS. But no one else pointed it out, so i didn't plan on announing this major mistake to the world. And as for the Sages being friends HELLO! I think we all knew who was going to be sages before the story began anyway (rolls eyes), but i have to agree with you that it would've been more interesting if they didn't know each other before the adventure started. I started thinking about the idea for a remake several chapters ago, but i wanted to write the prologue for it before i made the announcment. So, yea, thanx for the review._

_**Teen Freak: **lol, all i have to say to you is...YOU'RE NUTS BFF!! lol. even though i was with u while u wrote those reviews i still crack up every time i read them!! LMAO!! Thankies bestest buddy o' mine!!! (even though u didn't actually READ the story, lol)_

_**Priestess kurumi inu's sister**: AWWW!!! Gratsi!! Thank u SOOOOO much for ur awesome reviews!! They make me SOOOO happy!!! lol. Hope u liked the new chappie and that the wait was worth it!! U ROCK!!! C-YA!!!_

_**Sari Kamiya01**: Lol! i like the way u think . Gets thrown off a cliff and into a firey pit of death, i'll have to use that next time i get mad at my friend David, MUWAHAHAHAHAHA, ehem, lol. Haha, nobody likes Trigger, YaY!! That's what i wanted!! but no worries, he gets better!! and he will no longer cause a threat to the greatest couple in all the world, Taiora . THANX FOR THE REVIEW!! Luved it . (just cuz i never get tired of saying it, i'll say it again) U ROCK!!! lol. LATERZ!!!_

_**iamkagomeiloveinuyasha**: YaY!! I LIVE!!! lol. HECK NO U ROCK MORE!!! (gasp) Ur teacher is EVIL!! lol. Don't worry, i've got a crazy teacher too! My spanish teacher, i swear, she escaped from a mental institution somewhere in Mexico and came here to hide from the law, and whenever she has to go back she wears a blonde wig that i found under her desk!! SERIOUSLY it's THERE!!, lol. well that's my weird teacher for ya, lol. Well, i hope ya liked this newest chappie!! And i hope it was worth the wait!! C-YA!!!!_

_**JyouraKoumi**: Uhhhh...dud, a little word of advice, yea, if u're gonna insult someone, do it in a language they can understand (rolls eyes) Seriously! No one can understand u!! And honestly i don't give a damn what u say or think or whatever so back off u low, egocentric, pain in the ass, has too much time on their hands, gangsta wannabe, who's only enjoyment is clicking on random peoples' stories and lowering their confidence. In case i spoke in words that are too big for your tiny brain let me use something i KNOW u'll understand: fucc off_

_**YamiTai**: Dark sides are so cool (grins) lol, my dark side is so evil she took over hell twice. (after the first time she got bored then took over it again ) Ooooh, and Tai's dark side is SO evil, i have some seriously devious plots in store for the Sages. lol, and they'll find out his REAL identity soon enough, after they get all the crests. THANX for the review dude!! U ROCK!! LATERZ!!!_

_**Liz**: HIYA!! lol. Awww...that's so nice! I'm glad u luv my story (beams) Ooooh!! That's actually a really good idea, it does kinda seem that way doesn't it (grins) But nope, but she does play a major role later in the future that unlocks the key to Tai's power and everything. Yep . THANX SOOOOO Much for the review!!! U ROCK!!! C-YA!!! _


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